I recently read a great piece of advice from one of my favourite authors, Brandon Sanderson, and it has completely revolutionized the way I look at my work. He said that you shouldn’t aim to be an author who wrote a great book, you should aim to be a great author.
I took this to mean that you should nurture yourself as a writer, put time and effort into your craft and your personal development, as you would undergo training and professional development in any career. Because of this, I am now putting a lot of time and effort into improving my craft. I am taking courses on worldbuilding, character development and writing dialogue, as well as closely studying some of the greatest authors I know (Sanderson’s courses and advice being the main source of knowledge!). And I’m loving it! I’m already changing the way I write and altering my perspective on building a series.
So, I want to know, which authors have inspired or motivated you? Who has given good advice or tips to help you develop your craft?
Origin of Shadow – Find out where the Brotherhood began
As many of you are aware, I released a novella last year called Genesis of Light. It told the story of the beginning of the Children of Light, and gave the start of Callista’s story in the war.
Well, now I am preparing to release the second half of that story.
Origin of Shadow covers the same time period as Genesis of Light, but from the perspective of Vincent Wilder. Vincent is the leader of the Brotherood of Shadow and this novella tells his beginnings in the seedy underworld of crime.
Creativia (my publisher) has accepted the manuscript and it is now going through final editing, with a view to being released later this year.
I can’t reveal the cover design just yet, as it is still being finalised. However, here is a sneak peek at some of the first art draft (credit again to Irina French).
A blurb and extract for Origin of Shadow will be coming soon. Stay tuned!
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If there’s one thing I love more than writing, it’s reading Brandon Sanderson. The man’s a genius and this quote more than sums up how I feel when reading his work
My epic fantasy series ‘The Light and Shadow Chronicles’ has undergone a makeover!
A Chronicle of Chaos was first published by Creativia in June 2016. The amazingly talented Irina French designed the original cover. It features an ancient shield carved with symbols of importance to the history and lore of Alcherys and Meraxor (the warring nations in the series.)
Now, Creativia Publising has designed brand new covers, but still utilising the work of the original artist. Here are the two covers side by side:
In a world ravaged by war, the paths of two warriors are about to cross with world-shattering consequences.
Chaos is a soldier of The Children of the Light, and fights in the name of destiny, honor and glory. Arrogant and headstrong, he believes he is the strongest warrior in the land, until a fateful coincidence puts him at the mercy of the demon Anathema.
The two strike up an intense rivalry, but their obsession to destroy one another only leads them closer together. When the forces of light and dark collide, where will their loyalties lie?
The Shield of Soren is the second book in the epic fantasy series (although you can read them in any order). Released by Creativia in March 2017, this book has also had a makeover:
Ten-year-old Soren
Nitaya’s marked talent makes him the youngest soldier ever to become an
apprentice to the legendary warrior, Raven Lennox. As a prince of Alcherys, he
will be expected to fight in the eternal war against the Brotherhood of Shadow
when he reaches sixteen.
But is the young prince
up to the task when he’s more interested in causing mischief than in mastering
weapons?
When one of Soren’s adventures goes off course, he unwittingly unleashes a deadly threat. It appears that an age-old prophecy is finally coming to pass, and Soren and his family must take a perilous journey deep into their enemy’s land. Does Soren have what it takes to save his country before the Brotherhood destroys everyone and everything he loves?
This
poetry collection was originally written in Portuguese and then ‘translated’
into English. Instead of a direct translation, however, the poet used similar
rhyme, rhythm and symbolism to recreate the atmosphere and emotion of the
original. Both language versions are presented beautifully alongside one
another.
The use
of vocabulary, structure and rhythm in the collection are beautiful. The author
has a stunning grasp of language and description, and each page is beautifully
illustrated with gorgeous hand-drawn pictures. What makes this collection of
poetry great is that each work is an extended metaphor of love and human
connection as a dance. This gives the book a cohesive structure, even though
each poem is self-contained.
My
personal favourite poem from the collection is entitled ‘Hermaphrodite’. The
use of rhyme and rhythm is exquisite and the language choices paint a lovely
mental image.
I only have
two criticisms. There are a few spelling errors in the translator notes which
is unfortunate, considering how well translated the rest of the book is. The
other criticism is that some of the poems have lovely use of language but it is
difficult to see the meaning behind the words. The beauty of the language
occasionally masks the intention, when the words should merely be a conduit for
the meaning. This is merely my own opinion, however, and I am sure that every
reader will take meaning from the poems in their own way.
Blurb:
Dancing-you is a passionate tale written in the shape of poems. Each poem is a moment of a story swaying through metaphors and literals of dance, myths, and philosophic thoughts. Bringing in mythological tales and gods, pagan beliefs, romance, spirituality, and mysticism. The fusion of two bodies as a puzzle. The merging of two souls as one. The merging of oneself with the own essence of life. A magical book, exquisitely crafted and illustrated in watercolor paintings and simultaneously displayed in two languages, Portuguese and English
Over the past few years I’ve tried lots of different marketing tactics, social media platforms etc and I’ve come to the conclusion that quite a lot of it is a waste of time and money. It helps for exposure, of course, but it doesn’t produce sales or convert people into fans.
So, my aim is to identify my real fans. Those of you who look forward to my new releases, who are interested in how I write or where I get my ideas from, and most importantly, those of you who are immersed in my fantasy world and are desperate for the next installment.
It’s entirely possible that there will only be one or two of you who consider yourself true fans, but that’s okay – you’re still more valuable than my random 10.1K twitter followers! I’ve put together this form to gather information on my fans – who you are, what you want from me, and what I should write next.
The world in the Light and Shadow Chronicles is in a state of eternal conflict between two nations – The Children of Light and Brotherhood of Shadow. They have been at war for thousands of years, in a stalemate that is manipulated by forces greater than any of them realise. Both armies try to shift the scales in their favour by recruiting greater forces – angels, demons, dragons, armies of the underworld, and magical beings. The war continues to grow in scale until the entire world is dragged into the conflict and it can only end in a cataclysmic Armageddon.
Each of the stories in the series focuses on a significant character or group and their role within the battle. Every story is laying the foundations for something else, like building blocks for the epic finale. The books are written out of order – one story may feature a character in his adulthood, the next is set before he is born, the next after his death. Putting the order of events together is up to you.
This means that you may choose your own journey through the saga. If you feel connected to a certain character, you can follow that individual’s story first. And if you join the series after book 5 is released, there is no need to read books one through four first!
So where does the new book fit into the series?
Genesis of Light is a novella set towards the beginning of the timeline, which tells the origin story of the Children of Light. Another novella will be released later this year to explain the origin story of the Brotherhood of Shadow. This novella is entitled Origin of Shadow and is currently in editing.
