Category Archives: writing

Dropping the other shoe

books, writing

Movie sequels can be dangerous. There have been many times I have enjoyed a movie and been satisfied with the ending and then along comes a sequel and I am torn. Do I see it or not? It’s the same with books. Unless there is a compelling reason for a continuation, I am leery of picking up a sequel.

Which makes the rest of this post so funny.

The story I have been working on? It’s a sequel to Sudarium. Considering how much I truly loved writing the first novella and the nice point where it ended, I was hesitant to continue the misadventures of Sara and Vishi for fear of ruining a good thing. Unfortunately, I did leave clues in the first story that need to be explained so I felt an obligation to pick up the pencil again. It’s nice to realize the second one has been just as much fun to write, up to this point. A friend suggested combining the two into a full length novel. I must say that sounds like a nice idea, but that means repackaging, etc., which might prove confusing.

Speaking of confusing, I do believe the first novella has fared rather badly because of its title, mainly because the word sudarium has now become associated with the shroud of Turin, and that is unfortunate. The original slant of the story was the unknown history of things you find in a thrift store –  I mean, do you know where the item has been? Who owned it? It seemed rather comedic and dangerous to have an original Roman soldier’s scarf or sweat cloth (a sudarium) make itself available to a young woman and then take over her life with its attached history (and former owner). Most of the people I know who have read it have enjoyed it, but then, because I do know them, they are probably biased.

The sequel will hopefully have a better name, though I am still leaning toward Latin at this point. It will also have the same comedic and dangerous slant simply because sometimes you have to laugh at dangerous things and situations or they overwhelm you. As long as it stays fun to write, I will pour my heart into it.

Also, since I’m not really into writing for the money, I decided to put Maker on sale for the rest of the month. Maybe someday I will finish the sequel that belongs with that one, too…

Learn something new every day

writing

Ever hear of MOOCs? MOOCs are Massive Open Online Courses, and they are essentially free online courses from universities around the world that are offered to anyone with an internet connection and a desire to learn. I did a little research on them today, based on this webpage.

There are also self-paced writing ones. Here’s the main page. I plan to bookmark it and check again to see when courses I really wanted but had already happened might come around again.

Plans that go awry

writing

Well, I had hopes of finishing the fantasy novel this year. Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on the view) I am off on another story I hadn’t expected, but is proving to be very fun to write. I’ll see how long this one takes and if I have time to work on the other later this year.

You know, if I had a dollar for every time my writing plans were hijacked by creative spurts like this one, that come from (seemingly) nowhere, I probably would make far more than I ever have selling stories. Not that I write to sell stories, I don’t. I write because the stories come and I think some of them are good enough to write down for posterity. Most writers probably do that. Most average writers, anyway.

Every time I go to Smashwords, I see new novels from writers who had to get their stories down, too, and then decided to share just for fun, like me. I am grateful I live in an age where we can do this, as the majority of us would probably be cut down in the normal publishing channels and our stories would never get a chance to see the light of day.

What would it be like to be a big-name writer who actually has contracts or deadlines, where the focus must remain on what is needed rather than on what creativity slips into random day dreams? I cannot imagine, and I actually hope I never will. It’s too much fun being a little guy. There’s freedom in having your plans go awry and giving creativity full rein so you can see where it takes you.

It’s not profitable, of course, but it sure is fun.

Happy writing!

Novella next week?

books, writing

Several tales in Stories from the Hut were suspenseful and creepy. This is not because I actively look for suspenseful and creepy storylines to pursue, but because I do enjoy asking my friends for prompts during September and October to see if I can’t write something to entertain them. Most of these shorts turn out strange and wild because of the season, but there are some exceptions.

This year, one very dear friend gave me a three word prompt (thrift store scarf) that turned into an unexpected novella that was a very great pleasure to write. I love action and adventure and this little book had both in abundance. I am hoping to post it on Smashwords next week and will put a link in this blog when I do.