Another year has come and gone and I hope that everyone was able to keep on top of their goal list for the year. I'd like to say I've stayed on track, but I know I've derailed on occasion. It's okay! Keep on writing. Work on your goals and don't give up. Even though the end of the road may seem so far away, you can do it.
From my family to yours, Happy New Year and keep on writing!
As we plunge into the holidays, which ever they may be, we spend a lot of time trying to fit in family activities and our projects go to the way side. Don't get me wrong, families are very important! But so is your writing. Here are a few ideas on how to sneak in a few minutes of writing in-between all the fun family activities, at least what has helped me.
1) The few minutes you are eating breakfast. Make sure to eat breakfast, of course, but take a notebook to the table. Think on your story ideas and jot down a few notes. If you are like some families, where everyone eats together, zone out for a few minutes and just think on ideas. Then after breakfast, jot them down quick. The same could work for lunch and dinner, even at work!
2) Ten minutes before bed, as things are winding down, jot down the ideas of the day or think on your story to relax your mind. Just because you don't write anything down doesn't mean you haven't been productive. Sometimes thinking on the story plot is just as important as the writing.
3)Tell the family you need a few minutes to yourself and dump out your ideas, (or some of them), before you forget them. Most families will understand the need. Creativity doesn't happen on a schedule.
4) Don't stress if you can't think of anything. This last one is important. With all the hustle and bustle going on during the holidays, it is understandable if you can't think on your story. Just remember to pick up the pen, (or keyboard), after the holidays. Don't give up on your dream.
Have a wonderful holiday season and good luck in the new year with your writing projects!
The world you create is unique to you and you, as a writer, can take it where ever you want. But what happened before your characters went on their little jaunt? These are a few things I think are good ideas to look at and look at doing.
1) A timeline. I made one of these for my roleplaying sessions just so I could make "ruins" or "lost civilizations" my characters could discover. But this works for books, as well. Characters will interact and talk about the past, mostly in passing, in your stories, so it is good to be consistent.
2) In that same vein, a timeline may make you think of other story ideas. In my case there is the "Time of Chaos". There is got to be some good short stories in there somewhere, right?
3) Or knowing where my other story ideas fit in to my world. I have the Chosen, (War of the Gods), and Noshi and her adventures. Though I haven't written their sagas, (or nothing I want to share at the moment), I needed to know where they sat because they are referenced to so many times in my novels I am publishing. Readers want to know there is some thought put into the timeline of things.
4) Fleshing out the past. I use these as small writing exercises to get my brain going. I have worked on fleshing out the Temple of the Gods and the kingdom of Janesh, along with other small bits of history. Maybe I might talk about the founding of the Clan Warriors. But then you can sneak tidbits in to your main novel, knowing that you will be consistent with what you are writing.
You may not use any of this, but it will help you make out a well rounded world and may just lead to other story ideas! Not to mention keep you writing!
Happy Writing.
I am now in the revision phase of my story writing. With all four books "written" and the first published I need to make sure everything flows and makes sense. And that I don't sound like a four year old as I write. Here are a few things I'm doing to make sure my novels are very polished before I let them loose on their own.
1)Reread the story. This sounds sort of redundant, after all, you wrote the darn thing. But sometimes you get your thoughts down and think you are good and coherent and then you realize that thought doesn't belong as you reread the story. I had one segment I just thought was too contrived and "why would my characters fall for that!" so I rewrote the section. But I found it because I just read through it like a reader would.
2) Check your language, punctuation and spelling. This harkens back to your school days and the English teacher berating you for not doing just that. But if you want your novel to look professional, and you don't have an editor or publishing house, you need to put your best foot forward.
3) Check your facts. I realized I had renamed something in the first book and now I need to go back and make sure it matches in the next three books. Just bad form to get the name wrong in your own book. But that goes with all the facts. At the end of the second book I had six guards to start with and suddenly there were two dozen. How did that happen? So I needed to adjust.
4) Read it out loud. This was my husband's idea. Something might look fine as you type it, but when you say it out loud, sometimes you notice mistakes. I have caught several errors this way.
Mostly, just make sure your story, which you have worked so hard on writing, is polished. You want readers to enjoy your story, not be stuck on your mistakes.
Happy writing!
Everyone has their own way they like to organize their thoughts and ideas. My son does everything on the computer, my daughter and I love spiral notebooks, some people use notecards. Here are a few ideas that might help you find your organizational path.
1) Do you like to write or type? As I mentioned, I love spirals. They litter my work area. So to find anything I label the outside of the spiral with titles such as "characters" and "notes" or "places". I try to keep my main thoughts and characters toward the front and the lesser thoughts to the back, but after awhile, they just blend together.
2) So the spirals get a little out of hand and I have to move to writing everything on the computer and have folders I can organize with just a move of the mouse. This is more ideal for some people. My son spends hours organizing his files, so I'm assuming there are others who like to do the same thing. For me, it's more of an end process. I take my spirals and their creative notes and organize them once I get them out of my head.
3) Notecards. Some people like to put a thought or character on note card and organize them in a way that makes sense to them. It is a little more time consuming because then you have to physically organize the cards, but if it works for you while you write, then go for it.
What ever method you choose I recommend some major points to write down/keep track of:
1) Characters and where they come into the story. Also why they are vital, relationships to your main characters, and any secrets you have associated with them.
2) Places. You want the places your characters go to be consistent. By giving yourself notes, you will ensure they will be.
3) Notes! This is probably the most important part. There is a small section in my story with a side character that I hint at something grand.... and I can't remember what I meant by that "hint". I pound my head a lot about it and hope I find a note or something amongst all my papers so I can figure it out. Hopefully this never happens to you!
Happy Writing!
So as I began writing more in earnest, (and in a more organized manner), I realized making "Location Descriptions" was also a great idea. I took the general idea for a character description and tried to make it relevant to a location. For me, it was a great thing to do for my roleplaying group. People like to feel as if they are there and the better description you have, the more likely the players and readers will see what you are trying to describe.
Here are the highlights I like to hit:
1) Site name. This seems obvious, but as you run a roleplaying group, or are even writing, it's nice to make sure you are consistent on the name.
2) Surrounding area. This gives a reader a good idea of what the area is like. Is it just a castle out the middle of no where or in the middle of a grand city?
3) Exterior and interior descriptions. This could be a huge description which you may never need to use, but its a good way to get your creative juices flowing. Not to mention if you don't flush it out, as a GM a player will definitely ask for a description!
4) People associated with this building/location. You don't have to flush out the characters here, but when you are writing and want to mention the barkeep for the inn they were staying at who gave them information, you don't want to look through all your notes to find a name. Trust me, it's not fun.
5) Attitude and dress of people. This is more of a general feeling so you can give the ambiance of the place and a quick description of those around them. Trying to remember if a city is the one where feathered caps is all the rage versus more conservative dress, is a pain.
6) Rumors to be found. This is more for the roleplaying but still is good for planning out your story plot. Taverns are always a good rumor mill for roleplaying, but you can use them in writing as well. There are several places in my story that the main characters hang out in taverns to see if they can be moved in the right direction.
7) Defenses. This is more for castles and the like, but it is good to know. How many soldiers are your characters going to have to fight through to get to the next plot point? What kind of weapons or magic will they encounter? How will they counter the defenses? These are all good things that can be figured out in this section.
Happy Writing!
When I started taking writing classes to make my writing even better, one of my teachers mentioned having an outline for your character, to not only keep track of what you've done with them, but also to flush them out before you use them, or even as you use them. Here are some key things I would suggest you should consider having in your outline for your major, (or even minor), characters:
1) Start with a name. For some people this may or may not be easy. My husband takes forever to pick a name for his RPG and video game characters, so you may have to come back to this.
2) Background or bibliography. What do you want your readers to know and what do you need to know to write this character true.
3) Race, Age, Height, Weight, Body type, etc. I have a long list of characteristics I fill out, but really this is more for your use then reader use. It helps you keep consistent on how a character looks or talks or acts. Trust me, with a huge list of main and almost main characters, sometimes you forget what a character looks like or is dressed like.
4) Career. As obvious as this may seem, sometimes it's a good ideas to just keep a note on this. Elly, for example, is now a swordswoman, but originally she was a weaver.
5) Prejudices, best and worst qualities, and even weaknesses. Krom, for example, has the weakness that he always tells the truth. He is almost incapable of lying. Sort of important when he is trying to be incognito.
6) Odd talents. This is more a personality goody, but it does help you fill out a character and make them feel real. Duncan is a good story teller and his friend Tres the mercenary is an excellent singer.
For those who roleplay and are GMing, this is also a good way to flush out your NPCs for use in your campaign.
Try this out. Make it as complex or simple as you want, but have fun!
Happy writing.
If you notice in my story, Duncan doesn't have a familiar like most fantasy mages. Most of my mages don't. It's not so much an oversight, but a personal decision. Familiars need to fit the personality of your mage and most of my mages, and wizards, just don't have the right temperament for a familiar.
For most of my mages I use their staves as their "familiar". They require the staff for most of the more consuming magics that take great power, but can still cast without the staff. The same can be said for mages who have familiars.
I'm not against familiars in my world, but here are a few things to think on before giving your PC a familiar if you are playing in my world setting.
1) If a player gains a familiar, make sure they pay attention to it. My husband off the cuff said if I rolled a 20 on a D20 I could have a pseudodragon for my first ever familiar. Guess what, I ended up with a pseudodragon. But he made me pay attention to that little booger. I had to make sure it had gems, plenty of ale and good food, and was pampered. I paid for that power in spades.
2) Make the familiar a "player character". The guys I played with would randomly take turns playing my wonderful familiar. I think I lost more money to my own familiar then I did to paying for my equipment. The point is to keep the familiar fresh and upfront. Plus, as a bonus, those players who are not in the scene or actively playing can have something to do.
3) Ask your player what kind of familiar they would like. This is as personal as making the character and the player should have a say. But don't let them get wild and crazy. No dragons, no demigods, no all powerful beings. If the player can explain a good reason for that werewolf, think about it, but just remember it could unbalance your campaign.
Happy gaming!
As I get back into the groove of writing since I sent both my kiddos off to college this year, I have a few thoughts. They may even be good thoughts.
1) Set a writing time. I've mentioned this many times, but if you are in a life transition it becomes even more important. You want to tell your self I will get to it later or I can skip this one time. Don't skip your writing time if you can help. Life happens, but even if you take 5 minutes to say to yourself, "okay, this is what I need to think on," it helps.
2) Keep copies of different versions. This seems like a weird idea, but what if you don't like your rewrite? What if the rework becomes corrupted? Things like this happens. I had the latest version of my 2nd book, (coming as soon as my college daughter cover artist finds two seconds to make me a cover), and I was going through it for any errors. I found a sentence that was cut off and unfinished and I couldn't remember what it was supposed to say. So back to an earlier version and there was my two sentences I some how had deleted!
3) Keep physical copies. Why? Hard drives blow, back ups disappear. Yes, you'd have to retype the whole darn thing, but do you really want to write everything?
4) Have someone to bounce your ideas off of. Writing in a vacuum doesn't always work. You may think it's a great idea, but when you try to explain it to someone else, sometimes it doesn't sound so great.
Happy Writing
The Soaring Dragon, in Devonshire, is owned by Joseph Sandturn. The building is three stories high, mostly stout wood, with clay tiled roof. There is a stables in the back large enough for several wagons and about 10 horses. The inn also has it's own well and a small bath house. The sign is marked by a large, flying platinum dragon and "Soaring Dragon" carved beneath.
The first floor is the tavern, with the kitchen and Joseph's family living space in the back. The second and third floors are for guests, with small rooms so Joseph can have many guests at once, each room sleeps about 2 or 3 people comfortably. He has no common sleeping room, but will allow travelers to sleep in the tap room once the tavern is shut down for the night if they can't afford a room or he doesn't have room.
His wife and eldest daughter cook, his youngest sons run the stables. His only son-in-law helps him run the tap room, now that he is getting a little older.
This is a moderately costing inn, with each room coming with a meal. He has several bouncers who are friends he made in the militia and live near by. They rarely have to do anything, since Joseph's clientele are mostly working men and merchants, and like Joseph's wife's food.
The inn is situated closer to western gate, but is close enough to the eastern gate he still gets caravans coming in from the east.
Happy writing!
Joseph Sandturn is the owner of the Soaring Dragon in Devonshire. He is merely mentioned a few times in the first book, "The High King's Sword", but he is a vital cog in my story world.
The son of farmers he, like many young men, dreamed of adventure. He joined the militia, then a mercenary group. He spent five years fighting bandits, monsters and slavers. After he saved enough money, he bought an inn in Devonshire so he could live without fear of losing his life. He married, had five children, and life was good.
He kept in contact with his good friend, Amber, the daughter of Lee the Seer and their children would play with each other. Joseph considered Amber and her daughter, Margaret, part of the family and when they needed aid, he was more then happy to give it. When Amber died of the winter sickness, Joseph continued to check in on Margaret and Lee.
This becomes vital when the Black Wizards come to take Devonshire. When Margaret showed up on his doorstep that fateful day, he didn't think twice about taking her in and hiding her. But he was a man of action and sitting and doing nothing was killing him, so he snuck out as many militia men as he could, along with their families. He didn't realize the minotuars knew until later, but he was grateful to find out they were actually aiding him in his actions, even if he didn't know at the time.
Overall he is not a huge character, but he is a lich pin and moves my plot along.
Happy writing.
Kredoc Bloodhelm, father of Tarkil, was supposed to be a background character who just popped in every once in a while to make Tarkil's life complicated, but I found myself giving him a background, (even if not really in the stories), and beginning to like this clearly Lawful Neutral character (if you like to put it in roleplaying terms).
Kredoc is the head of House Bloodhelm's spies and assassins, making sure the House is informed and can take out any issues that may be incurred by the House. He is the second son of House Bloodhelm, Ikaris Bloodhelm being his older brother and the Leader of House Bloodhelm. He never wanted to be the Knight in shining armor, he wanted to be the man behind the scenes, but he was pleased his two elder sons did want to become Knights. He was also secretly pleased when Tarkil wanted to be a spy.
In his younger years Kredoc was a rogue. He and his butler, Jarvis, adventured across the country side, getting themselves in all sorts of trouble, making friends and enemies as they went. When it became time to settle down and become the House spy, he became the serious gentleman he is today, though he and Jarvis always share secret smiles over remembered times. It is hard to see Kredoc smiling about anything with his incarnation in the stories.
He is hard on all his children, wanting the House to have the best protectors possible, but he sees too much of himself in Tarkil and worries his youngest will chaff against the path House Bloodhelm is going down.
Kredoc is a follower of Sircarius, though he keeps his worship more to himself then out in the open, since House members are supposed to follow the Gods of the Light or Neutrality. He doesn't love his wife, per say, but he does not wish her ill will, since a prearranged marriage was neither of their choices. But as a House scion, it was expected. They work well together and have raised three fine sons together, so Kredoc feels it was a good arrangement.
In the future, I hope that he becomes a more prominent part in short stories or even further plots for other novels.
Everything has a beginning, from the birth of child to the birth of a story. My story is no different.
My story started from a few of us getting together for some much needed D&D and me wanting to showcase the world I had so loving labored on for almost a decade and a half. Here was this world flushed out with enough information to make a roleplaying supplement, (or several), and a bunch of us who needed an outlet since we were all stuck all over the country and kinda on our own.
We used the internet, before Discord or like applications where we could have done our roleplaying in real time, so I had to cobble together emails to make one coherent game "session". It was difficult, to say the least, but as the months progressed I had reams of notes for a story idea. I had to change some things, because you can't make 4 people follow a coherent story line to the "T", and add my own twists and turns that could not be used in a roleplaying session. (If you have ever been a DM you know it's hard enough to get your players to go even close to what you want them to do!)
The more I worked on a story idea, the more I wanted to write the story, (which ended up being 4 novels). Luckily my husband, (my inspiration for Krom and Duncan), was all for such an endeavor. We both knew it wasn't going to happen over night, since we had two kiddos and I was very involved in their activities, but he made sure I got the time to write, which I am eternally grateful for.
So how did your story start? Was it a long hike? A drive in an unfamiliar place? Something that happened in your life or in the city you live in/near? Write that down, too! Later, if you do get your story published and you have a following, your readers will want to know!
Happy Writing!
As the fair season winds down and the kiddos are ready to go to school, you might be thinking I need to get back to writing. I agree! Even if you never publish, the act of writing is not only relaxing but may help you maintain your brain function as you get older. (I'm a biologist, I worry about these things.)
So here are some ideas to do so, (which I may have mentioned before, so bare with me.):
1) Set aside a certain time a day just for you to write. Make it like an appointment and put it on your calendar. I live and die by our family calendar, so I make the 15 minutes after I check emails to be "writing time". I wish I could say I get to it every day, but life is life. Just try to make it work and it will keep you writing for the long haul.
2) Don't make yourself write on one story or story idea. Bouncing might be a good idea. If you hit a brick wall, (not that any of us have done this), banging your head won't help. Walk away to another project and get the creative juices going again. Who knows, you may find a better story idea that way.
3) Shut out the world. I love my kiddos, but my college students are very talkative. I have to tell them it's mom's writing time and tune out the world. It may not be much time, but it's mine.
4) To go along with this, shut off your phone. I swear my mother knows it's my writing time and calls. So I just turn the phone off for 15 minutes and then call her back later.
The take away is just keep writing! Something good may come of it!
I have a great idea for a story and my characters need to slay the bad guy, come from humble beginnings and face all sorts of adversities.
Well, that is a good start, but you need to lay out an idea of where to start, your characters, and how your characters are supposed to get to the end and what they have to overcome to reach their goal.
My suggestion is to take this in steps.
Step One: Discover both your protagonists and antagonists. I've read many books where the main character is well flushed out, but the bad guys are just flat. It makes it hard to get excited about the story if you know the bad guys are just going to basically role over or be the stereotypical bad guy. Put some time and thought into ALL your characters, (maybe even some side characters) before you go very far. At the very least, this process may help you with your outline.
Step Two: Make a basic outline. Characters start here---This is their adventure---This is their adversities---This is how the over come and win. Simple at this stage is better.
Step Three: Flush out your outline. This is where you do those pesky outlines your High School English teacher always liked you to do. Do the major points, with some sub-headings and ideas. Then I would suggest going back and typing in more detailed ideas. So, for example:
As a writer, there are many ideas that influence how you write. From the way you grow up, to where you live, even the culture you are from. It's unavoidable that your personal experiences would influence your writing style and the content of your story. I mean, my father came from Oklahoma, where apparently they eat onions like apples, (I always thought my father was weird, but you have to love them, right?). How you see the world will really depend on your life experiences. Here are a few elements to take into consideration when you are writing.
1) You know you. Don't be ashamed of who you are or where you come from. The idea that an inner city person is going to perceive the world way different then me, a forest raised far from civilization person, is not unreasonable. It's what makes all of us unique. Its fun to see other people's perspectives. Just bare his in mind, though, when you are writing. Not all people in your audience are going to understand mass transit or crowded cities, nor are all people going to understand Forest Service roads and large tree stands. Take a little time to explain such things, but not overtly. Yes, you are explaining the obvious to you, but others may not see the obvious as well.
2) Don't be afraid to use ideas of the past. In my stories I use the Roman Empire as a background for my Empire of Ariella. The military, the leadership structure, even some of their beliefs on how things should be run. It's not being lazy in your writing, it's incorporating ideas from our world. It is who we are and there is nothing wrong with blending it in to your stories.
3) Research what you don't know. Like in the first idea, I really have no idea how mass transit works. (I grew up in the woods, mass transit was when the moms caravanned to town to do the monthly shopping, not buses and trollies.) If I were going to use that in my story I would have need to look into how that works, like bus lines, times, routes, the whole nine yards. Don't be afraid to admit you don't know. If you don't know what a good tree for a forest would be in a certain climate, Google it. Ask a friend. Read a book. In this day and age, the information is always at your finger tips!
Happy Writing
This should be a no brainer for a writer, but even though a solid plot is vital, characters that are loveable, or ones you just want to hate, are essential. If you can't empathize with the characters, you won't enjoy even the best laid out plot.
I'd like to think I worked hard on my plots, but I think I've worked even harder on my characters, with a little help from those around me. I have my main characters which I spend a lot of time molding and shaping, but I also make sure my side characters are just as well thought out. Here is an example.
One side character I spend quite a bit of time on is Targon. Yes, he's a god, but he's essential to the plot, even if he isn't a main character. I make him humorous and almost "human" like to make the reader sympathize with him as he tries to save the world he loves through his rag-tag group of adventures. He breaks rules, he manipulates his fellow gods and mortals alike, and he never apologizes for what he has to do. I make sure he is embarrassed, helpful and God-like all in one breath, so a reader just can't forget him as they go about reading my story.
These thoughts also work for NPCs in a campaign someone might be running. Your players will enjoy the session much more if that barkeep who gives them a great nugget of information also tells a good story or listens to their worries.
My point is as a writer you can strengthen even the best plot, or prop up a small plot hole, with well thought out characters. Take the time to make your characters memorable. It will be worth it in the end.
Happy Writing!
So lets talk about my world.
My world consists of two major continents and two major island groups. At least at the moment. There is some unexplored areas I could always use later if I have need to expand my universe. To give you a rough idea of what they are like lets start with Taina.
Taina is the northern continent and could be roughly equated to North America. The west side of the continent is forest/farm land not unlike the west coast, (cough, cough, because that is what I know best), and the east would be more like the mid-west, with a little bit of coastal life on the east coast. The northern part has harsh winters, the coasts are pretty mild, the interior of the west is fairly temperate and the east is hot and dry during the summer and cold and harsh during the winter.
Ariella is the southern continent could be equated to the African continent, with belts of lush growth and areas of arid deserts, with huge mountain ranges that seem to pop out of no where.
The Dwarven Islands could be best equated to Britain and Ireland, with highlands, bogs, and harsh landscapes. This is a population which relies on fishing and herding of sheep and goats to feed the population, versus a lot of plant farming.
My last area is the Islands of Janesh. I would picture these like Japan. They have some gorgeous landscapes, but it is hard to eek out a living here, as well. In the time of my stories, this is mostly destroyed and the remains yet to be discovered.
Happy writing!
When writing up your companion book, have a small section in there for why and how your book/book series came into being. It could be as simple as, "I like the feel of the world I made," to as complicated as, "I worked on this idea for years."
For me, it was very personal. I'd been working on this world since college. It helped this homesick, very introverted girl focus on the good stuff that was happening in my life. I could spin things in a good light when the day was looking bad, such as I just bombed some test, or it could give me a creative outlet when the troop of boys I hung with were off doing "boy things". It was great for me.
Over the years I dabbled with my story, but work, kids, and married life kinda got in the way. Then my dad got sick. He had beat colon cancer a few years prior, actually the year before my husband and I got married, and was doing well, but then it came back with a vengeance. It hit his major organs and he was on dialysis. But he was cheerful. He showed the family his best side, even as we knew he was in pain. One day were were talking and he asked about my writing. I told him I was still dabbling at it and then he said something that still makes me tear up.
"Well, finish it up. I want to see it next to my Tolkien books, pronto."
Not only was he telling me he thought I could do it, but he was putting me on the same shelf of his all time favorite author. What an honor.
So on those days I think I can't finish, that I will never have my book published, I think of my dad. I can't let him down, so I will plunge ahead and finish my book, if for no other reason then to keep my promise to my dad!
Keep on writing!
I'm finding as my kids go three different ways to Sunday and I become my mother and mother-in-laws intermittent care takers, and throw in a family farm, writing doesn't get done as much as I'd like. But starting this week I plan on making sure my "butt is in chair" at least for 15 minutes a day. What, you say, just 15 minutes? Well, here is the thing. I say 15 minutes, but it could be longer. The 15 minutes is a start, it's a carved out time for ME. I say, "go away world", and give me 15 minutes. I hope that I will be able to write longer, but I will take what I can get at the beginning.
My point for bringing up my struggles is to give you hope. You, too, can try this method and find some writing time for yourself. That is the biggest issue with all would be writers. You make excuses, "It's a hobby" or "I'll do it later when things slow down". But things never slow down. I know retirees that are busier then me! If you truly want to let your writing bug do it's magic, just do it. Give yourself that time, give your creativity an outlet! Be you and express yourself!
Happy Writing!
Hopefully you have thought about your author page, but there are other ways to spread the word about your book. Some people like Linkedin, Twitter, Facebook, etc. Other ways are a Blog or a Website. I'm going to focus on the latter two.
The Website and Blog allows you to expand and show off your world, (take my blog for example). You can give all sorts of information about your books, where to get them, your world, even about yourself. Here are some things you might think about putting on the pages of your website or blog.
1) Your book titles! I'd post cover art and titles, once you have them for sale, so it's easy for a reader to find them. And don't forget to post where to find them!
2) A little bit about yourself. People like to know about the people they are reading about. I'd stay away from politics and sensitive subjects, but you can talk about your hobbies, why you like the genre you are writing in, even where you live, if you don't mind sharing.
3) Talk about your world/setting. For some people, the world will be here and now, but there might be twists, so don't think you shouldn't talk about your setting even if it is set in the here and now!
4) Pictures, maps, and concepts. Maybe you like to doodle and you have maps or character sketches. Maybe you can do graphic art on the computer. Here is the place to share them!
5) Links to your favorite authors and movies. This gives the reader an even better idea of where you are coming from or maybe they will appreciate some new reads that you like!
Happy writing!
So now you have your books and source book all ready to go. How do you tell the world all about it?
If you are self-publishing on Amazon, there is something called an "Author Page". There are some real good guides on what you need to do to set one up and attach them to your books you are trying to sell, so use Google to find one that works for you. Here a few things you will need when you go to do so:
1) A good biography. People like to know about the person writing their awesome novel!
2) A list of books. There may only be one, if it's your first go, but make sure to get all books, even if you are just publishing book three in a series. If someone likes one of your books, they might be more willing to buy another from you.
3) Website and blog info. How can they learn more about your world/novels/you? The author page is great, but you can't really go into your novels. (Friday I will talk about websites).
4) Book trailers. This is a newer thing, where you actually do a video about your book. It can be you talking about your book or even a movie trailer type video. Your creativity is the limit!
5) Author photos. This is up to you. You probably had at least one on your book cover, but it really depends on how much you want to show the world.
6) A follow button. When you post new stuff you want readers to see it, especially it is about a new release!
Keep on writing!
Hope everyone had a wonderful Spring Break, if they are around that age or have kiddos that age!
So how do you make the mundane of your world, important to how your world works, interesting to your readers?
I have a chapter, soon to be written, on the bits and pieces of the world, the glue you don't see, but many people who like your stories want to know! As a roleplayer, I like to know these things, and I think this is where you will have your most interest. Not only them, but the deep dive people who really get into your stories. I read everything on the Dragonriders of Pern by Anne McCaffery, to the point I at one point knew all the wyers and major houses by heart! In a chapter like this you want to bring in that sort of information you think is just a side description but is very important to your story world.
Here are a few things I thought of putting in:
1) Holidays. I'm going to stick to the major ones, but it makes your people of your world seem more real. Just think of how important holidays are to our world. To know what your characters find important in holidays can be interesting.
2) Languages. Some of this will probably be covered in regions or race areas, but to talk about the languages all in one spot is also a good idea. If you are Lord of the Rings fan you know how much time Tolkien put into his language stuff. I'm not going into that much depth, but I like to talk about the languages.
3)Money types. Just like our world, my world has different coinage. This is a small interest to most readers, but for roleplayers this is pretty vital. I have this in pretty good detail because we did use my world for roleplaying.
4) Trade routes. This is for the detailed orientated people, and roleplayers. If roleplayers use the world for being trade merchants/mercenaries knowing what they are hauling would be a great idea.
To make it interesting and not dry I plan on using quips from my bard narrator or even little stories to get the information out. And I also plan on relating it to some of the issues my characters have in the books, such as language issues.
Happy Writing!
With many fantasy books and sourcebooks, there is some sort of timeline in the front of the book. Generally, it's there to give the reader an idea of where the story is taking place in the "world's" timeline. For me, a timeline was important so I knew I was getting everyone to the right place at the right time, plus I could talk about distant events and make sure I was consistently keeping the times the same.
When writing a sourcebook you can expand on this short, (or not so short), timeline and maybe give a little life to the dates in the book. In roleplaying books they sometimes give a short timeline, then pick out some important dates that shape the world you are roleplaying in. For roleplayers, this important so they can feel as if their character truly lives in this world they are in. For readers, this allows them to see some more depth to the world they have come to enjoy.
For me, I am going to have a chapter on history, but not make it dry. That is a tall task, I'm sure. So I'm breaking down my chapter as follows:
1) A short timeline. Here I will hit all the major points in history in a bullet point list. I will start with the creation of Martapa and finish up with the current date of the High King's Sword.
2) I will take each bullet point and explain them a bit. At one point there is the comment that the dragons disappear from the world. Here I would explain the reasons and speculations by historians. The speculations is what will make it not just dry history. It's fun to see ideas of why they think the dragons disappear instead of a "just the facts, ma'am" kinda of article.
This doesn't seem like a lot, but once you get going this could be reams of paper. Make sure to hit the most important points in history and if these things didn't come up in the book or you plan on filling them out more in a later book, be vague, it's okay. If done properly, it will bring your readers back for more!
Happy writing!
A story isn't a story without the people who fill your world. In your sourcebook, you most definitely need to hit upon those same people, because your readers are going to want to know more about them.
One of my chapters will be devoted to the characters of my book. Some time in the past I found a wonderful outline to help you flesh out your characters. I'm not sure where, but it was just enough to get the creative juices flowing. I figured I would use a similar format for my book, but make it flow just a bit better. Here are the highlights I suggest you throw in about your characters:
1) Name and a short biography. This really depends on when you make your companion book. If it's with your first book in the series, you don't want to put too much in there. If it's after the series is done, feel free to let it all hang out. I mean, if someone is picking up your companion book, they've most likely read your stories and know all the plot excitement already!
2) Add statistics, because followers of your stories love that sort of thing. Height, weight, race, age, how they look and what they wear. Even speaking style is good. Do they speak with an English accent or, like Krom, rolling r's?
3)Their best and worst qualities. Elly loves animals, is a quick thinker and loves good jokes. But she is obsessed with killing Wizards, finding out who she is and saving children. This gives your character a little more depth, even though some of these things should be obvious when you read the stories.
4) You can also add in where they are found or how they are integral to the story. Shadowdancer was just supposed to be a random waif that Krom uses to find some information but became an important cog later on in the series. It happens more often then you think!
5)Lastly, add in some random facts about your character. Elly knows how to weave, while Krom can carve. Small things such as this make the characters a little more alive.
Keep on writing and good luck!
Alright, so we've determined that we want a source book for our series. Many fine book series, like Lord of the Rings, the Dragonriders of Pern, and even Dragonlance have sourcebooks to allow their readers see more of their world, but they all do it from a different take.
What is your take? Are you trying to just give a step by step view of your world? Are you setting up for the use in a roleplaying game? Or even just to fill in what you couldn't in the book? Or even all of these?
To help you pinpoint what you want to put in you need to know your goal. Myself, I plan as an exploration of my world as well as the ability for someone to use it in any roleplaying system. My husband and I use to roleplay every weekend, (before kids and tons of volunteering), and were starting to again, before the Covid. The ability to have another world to roleplay in would be awesome. I don't need a new system, we can use what ever one we want and adapt. But without a backbone to work with, it would be hard to game in my world. Roleplayers like a good handle on what they are playing in and with.
So my advice is decide what your goal is before you begin, so you know what information may or may not need to be in your source book!
Keep on writing!
I hope everyone has a chance to relax today, but also think how lucky we are to live where we do. Yes, I know not everyone is happy with every bit of our history, but think of what we have done as a country. Let's dwell on the positive and discuss civilly the negative and I think we can continue to have the greatest place in the world to live.
Stay safe out there and more writing on Friday!
Many fantasy stories have a higher power watching over the characters, whether known as the Fates, the Gods, or something else. If you are working in a fantasy world of your own, you probably have some form of guiding influence and will want to add them, even as a passing footnote, in your companion book. I am certainly no exception to this.
In my world, my Gods are integral, becoming characters of their own. My most used is Targon, God of Magic and the Arcane. He is a swashbuckling flop if there ever was one, riding the edge of God protocols and doing what he wants. But how do I talk about these all powerful beings with out making them seem as just some over powerful character?
Here is my rough plan on how to present my Gods:
1) I'm going to talk about their personalities. Are they friendly, indifferent, gruff? Like I said, my Gods ARE very much like characters, so it is good to know where they are coming from.
2)Describe their ethos/pathos. How does he/she like to interact ethically with mortals or just use them?
3) What is their realm of influence? In Targon's case, he oversees the arcane and magic in general. He effectively allows the other Gods have more or less power for their followers. It causes friction, to say the least. But this will give the reader an idea of how they would act or control.
4) How are they related to the other Gods? Are they all separate beings or did they create some of those who are in the pantheon? In my pantheon, most of the major gods consider Sarjon and Catiana their parents, though they aren't, because all the Major Gods simply appeared from the depths of space. But the minor gods, most of them, were the products of major gods dalliances, Targon being the father of many of them.
5) If you are setting things up for a roleplaying help, alignment and abilities of followers would be good, as well. In my example, Targon's followers should probably be a little chaotic and lean toward the neutral. They would have a lot more mage spells then priest spells, are charged with passing on knowledge of the arcane, and should enjoy a good wine now and again. You might also want to throw in what type of "vestments" priests are expected to wear.
6) How do they interact with other Gods? In my world, it is very important. Most Gods, even those of darkness, find Targon amusing, the unofficial God of Mirth. And Targon has a "friendly" rivalry with Lokar, the God of Death, while loving and sheltering his daughter, Aiyana, the Goddess of Love.
Keep on writing because you can do it!
So you have your generic outline? Good on you. What is the next step after that? Well, I suggest you slowly expand on that outline.
If you started like myself, you had what you wanted to have in each chapter. Basically, I wrote the chapter name and a few brief notes about what I would like in each chapter. Now lets take that basic idea and expand upon it. Here's my example. (Bare in mind, I'm not a professional, but sometimes you just need a little jump start to get you going!)
My chapter 7, theoretically, will be about the major groups which play a part in the my world of Martapa. The following is all I initially wrote down: Find the groups in my notes and make sure they are all in my list. From there, I've written down the major groups in a list like below.
Knights of Tridon
Blades of Janesh
Wizards of Shaniko
The Kin
Wolf Warriors
The Crystal Brigade
The Northern Alliance
Snowbird’s Spellblades
Society of the King
The Hand
Disciples of the Gods
Saber’s Blades
The Shadow Gaurdians
Need to describe each group, what they stand for, who is
usually found there, even a few major NPCS that would be found in the leadership or in the ranks.
It's just a little expansion, but it's a start. Everything about writing is steps. Don't overwhelm yourself and try to do it all in one sitting. Granted, if you can do that, good for you! For the rest of us mere mortals, we need to take it in steps.
My next step would be to hit highlights of each group, then flush out each group completely. I say that knowing that you might decide to change something halfway through your list and that way you haven't wasted a lot of time filling out each one, then just have to go back in change it. (Granted, that will probably happen as well 😂)
And if you are just writing a campaign for roleplaying, this is a good way to start, as well. You may not fill out the details quite as thoroughly as someone writing a book, but it's the same idea. Don't overwhelm yourself trying to make the best adventure ever. It will come to you and may, (and will) change over time!
Keep on writing!
If you are familiar with Disney's Mulan, Chi-Fu doesn't really want Li-Shang to succeed. So his comment after the huge rice fight is to say, "Day one..." with an arrogant tone. As I stare at my outline I feel like I'm staring at my own personal Chi-Fu, that he is ready to send off his scathing report on me for not getting further, faster on my companion book.
But I am ready to tell my own Chi-Fu to just take a hike. I have to realize, and so should all of you working on your books, that you can't get it all done in one day. That inspiration comes when it comes, that you will write when the the thoughts come to you. If you force it, it won't feel natural and may not be as good as you would like it to be.
I think my point is, yes, get your butt in the seat before your computer, (or notebook or scrap of paper) and try to write. But don't be hard on yourself if you don't write Homer's Iliad in one hour. Just take what you can get. Maybe it's just some editing. Maybe it's an outline. Maybe it's a little research. It all gets you moving in the right direction and is progress.
Don't give up on yourself and keep writing!
So you are getting close to finishing up and self publishing. That is very exciting! But maybe you should have someone who didn't write it, look it over. If you are publishing with a publishing house, they will have staff to do this for you, but for the self publisher, you are on your own.
Here are some suggestions to help you on your way:
1) Ask friends and family members to look it over. This is okay for catching spelling mistakes, layouts that just don't look good, or for, "hey, why didn't you add this", kind of things. For actual constructive criticism this may not be good. Unless you have a relationship like my husband and I where we are use to giving each other constructive criticism and not feeling offended, this may not be the best idea. As much as you want your book published, losing a relationship is not worth it.
2) Join a critique group. This can be fun and very rewarding. Early on, when I was taking classes, I joined the local writing guild and started attending meetings. While there, they had an option to sign up for groups and I found a marvelous group of very opiniated ladies with very diverse backgrounds and writing styles. I learned a lot and got a lot of good, constructive feed back. I'm hoping I gave some back, as well. Plus, we had a potluck each time we got together, so that was good, as well.
3) Pay for someone to look at it. Again, English majors at your local college would work, but there are professional editors that will charge by the hour or page. This is an option, but does cost money. Check with your local writing guild, because they will have a list of local editors. Not nearly as much fun as critique group, but if you are an introvert, this probably would work for you.
Keep on writing!
So once you've determined content, pictures, maps and organization, what size should my book be?
In most cases, with self publishing you are auto defaulted to 6 x 9 inch. For reading books, this is a great size. They aren't tiny print, like the 5 x 8 inch, but not the huge size of 8.5 x 11 inch. But reading books are a little different then a companion book. There is a lot more information in those companion books and at the very least, the larger the map in print, the better.
In KDP paper size and color will change the minimum price you have to charge for the book. I'm assuming that publishers will be the same way. Look up what size fits not only your look, but your budget. KDP is a little confusing, because it's example of 300 pages has a minimum amount of 7.42 dollars. I tried their little calculator for my own books and my 368 page book had a minimum of 8.79, but wouldn't get me out of the red for Expanded Distribution, (to book stores and libraries, basically), until 14 dollars. So bare that in mind, as well. Do you just want to sell on Amazon, or would you like libraries and book stores to be able to order it?
Keep on writing!
So what pictures should go in my book?
This is a definite individual choice, but here are some things to consider:
1) Can I put pictures in my book using a self publishing applications? I believe you can put pictures inside your book using KDP, but I'm still researching that topic. But other publishing applications may not allow them. You also have to consider resolution and how big they can be. Even a publisher is going to have restrictions, so before you go all gung-ho about putting in pictures, know your limitations!
2) What do I want to have pictures of? If you have limited space, keep to the most important ones. Main characters are probably the most important, but small maps or images of say relics or important documents might be good as well.
3) Where do I put them in my book? If it's a source book, as near to the information about that picture as possible. In a reading book, I'd do at the beginning or end of the book, or maybe at the beginning of a chapter.
4)How do I find my pictures? Well, just like maps, there are options! There are a lot of free images you can use, but those aren't very specialized for your story. Find an artist or draw them yourself! High School art classes, or even college ones, have very talented, not professional artists. Use your resources wisely!
Keep on writing!
Maps. You can love them or hate them. They can show what you want or never enough.
Fantasy stories, and role playing games, love maps. Sure, you say the party travels southwest, but what does it look like? Where are they really going? Give me some scale here!
For my companion book I most definitely want a map of my world, (and some regional and city maps as well). But how to best go about that? There are several options for this.
The first is the good old hand drawn stand by. My husband is a wiz at making area maps on graph paper. They aren't super detailed, but they are to scale, (engineers are like that), and you have a good idea where you are going. For a book, they probably won't work, but for roleplaying games they most certainly would.
Another option is semi-prepared maps that you fill in. A little above the old graph paper, but still in the hand drawn realm. When we were rolplaying a lot I liked to use AD&D World Builder's Guidbook by Richard Baker. I'm not sure if you can find it anymore, but I liked it over the graph paper, mostly because the sheets came with a key already in place.
Now there is also a lot of choices for online map makers, such as Inkarnate, Worldspinner, Wonderdraft, and many more. I would Google those and see which one might suit you. Some you can do very detailed maps, others look more Tolkien esk in nature. The one thing to watch if you want to use these for your books and sell said books is to see if you need to pay for such uses instead of just using the free version. On Inkarnate's website they do mention you have to have a subscription to use their maps in a published work. So check carefully before using this method, even if they the maps are super cool. A lot of these sites also allow you to make regions, cities or even building maps. So check them out!
Keep on writing!
If you are having your book professional published, some art director will figure this out for you and you might have little choice on how it looks, (but good on you for snagging a publisher!). But if you are on your own and self publishing, it is up to you. There are several steps to look at before deciding on what you want.
The first, what or who should be on the front? Do you want a stylistic cover? A map of your world? A main character? A mixture of everything? This seems like such a small step, but this is what going to catch a reader's eye. Depending on your genre, you can do a myriad of things. For science fiction, space battles are always eye catching. Ideally, I'd love an Elmore painting for mine, but since I can't, I will rely on my awesome daughter.
For example, I'm thinking the map of my world faded in the background with my group of ragtag heroes in the front, in a not so perfect group "photo". (Think rabbit ears.)
The next, how do I get the picture done? Do I hire an artist? Do I use stock art on KDP or what ever platform I'm using? Do I try my hand at art? (And you might be good, so don't discredit this idea!) As I've mentioned, my daughter is pretty darn good at art. She's self taught, not completely polished, but where else can you get a cover drawn for the promise of more paint and a batch of chocolate chip cookies? (Well, the cookies worked when she was younger...). I know not everyone is so lucky, so why not reach out to local High School art programs? The kiddos there are always looking for a few extra bucks and art teachers love for them to be focused. Also contact local artist guilds, if your area has one. Or network with fellow writers who might have an idea where to find a good, and reasonably priced, cover artist.
Lastly, make sure it fits in the cover space of your publishing platform. I'm in the process of using KDP and they do not make it easy to use your own pictures. Just know what you are getting into before you start the whole process of finding a picture. I'm not giving up, but it definitely is going to take some time.
Happy Writing!
Eventually I would like to have samples of my source book to show you, my loyal readers, but right now I'm organizing, so instead, I will share my process of thinking.
Right now I'm working on a smaller outline, that I will expand to a larger outline. I broke it up into chapters of what I would like share, (which may be more as I go through all my information, but you have to start somewhere).
So my suggestion for you, and this can even apply to your novel, as well, is start with an outline. It can be as basic or complex as you like. I'm sure your English teacher probably said the same thing when writing essays for their classes. 😁 For me, I like to start with the simple and then get super complex so you are basically writing the book/essay as you go, with the need for a good transitions here and there when you are done with the outline.
I started with chapter headings. So far I've got the following:
1) A small introduction. Most books of this nature give a quick overview of what to expect. It's good not only to get the reader an idea of where you are going, but to show case what you want to share.
2) Races. A world is filled with people and most people who read about your world want to know about those people. Here you can fill in those things which may have not hit the pages of your novel.
3) History. Sure, you give a small glimpse of your world in your novel, but I bet, like me, you have tons of history you made up to make sure things flow in the time line, (and to use as novel fodder maybe later). Show case all you want, but don't bog down in uninteresting events. We don't want to know farmer Joe planted seeds 40 years in a row, but we do want to know the world was saved in said year by said people.
4) Area descriptions. This is where you can make your world shine. Show case those large areas of your world, and those small spots you want to share with the rest of the world. It becomes a travel log for you reader. If any of you played 2nd Edition D&D there were travel guides for the Forgotten Realms called Volo's Guides, which had everything from haunted locations to inns to stay at. I probably won't get that in-depth, but it is something to think on, and is certainly enjoyable.
5) Gods. My world, and many fictional worlds, rely on their God/Gods as major player in their stories. Mine is no exception. In fact, my Gods/Goddesses become characters, mostly my God of Magic, but many others as well. Here you can talk about their ethos and their followers, along with symbols, colors, attire and hated enemies!
6) Life in General. What do people do for a living? What are their holidays? What money do they use for exchange. Reading a book, you pick up some of this, but not always a lot of it. Here, you could expand as much, or as little as you like.
7) Major groups. With these you could bring up major players in the world. My major bad guys are the Wizards of Shaniko. My major good guys are the Knights of Tridon. And there are all sorts in between.
So, keep on writing! You will get there, as well!
As I dive into the whole of a source book, which many good SciFi/Fantasy book series have, I realize I've dove into a deep lake. I have a lot of information on scraps of paper, notebooks of thoughts, and information stuck in my head. How do I organize it? How do you convey the most important parts of your world to the readers? What is the best format?
As I do this, I realize people who put these together for not only book series, but roleplaying games, are very good at their jobs!
My first decision has become how should I present the ideas of my book. I love the source books which are narrated by one of the characters of the book. So my idea is to use Duncan Bloodhelm as our guide through my world. He is a minor, but important character in my series, that the reader meets later in the series. As a bard, I figured, who better then he to lead us through my precious world.
So there is my first step. Now to actually write it! My suggestion, if you do something similar, find a voice for your world. It will give life to your world and not seem like you are reading an encyclopedia!
Like everyone else, I've made some resolutions for the year, many of them having to do with writing. I'm almost done with setting up my self published book. My cover artist, *cough, cough, awesome daughter, cough, cough* is helping me make the cover picture fit the cover then I'm on the way. So maybe I'll get that resolution out of the way, about 3 years late, but, hey, at least I'm getting there.
My big resolution for writing this year is to work on a source book for my world. So twice a week, I plan to share my progress here and hope I can keep up with my writing.
Hopefully you have some good resolutions for the coming year and one I hope we all share is to rid of this stupid Covid mess!
Keep writing!
