I have to admit, I completely forgot that this coming Thursday was Thanksgiving. Holidays are kind of weird for me. I keep thinking I should do something to acknowledge them in my stories, but they aren't really long enough, time wise, to warrant it. I can keep everything between major holidays.
I understand there's no need to do it. Forcing in a Christmas special for The Paladin is a little cliche, hell, even Halloween would be a little awkward (though exploring what actual monsters do on Halloween might be a fun short story) I just... I can't really find the motivation. I lost both my parents within this decade. I don't really have any family to speak of within driving distance. That means holidays feel awkward. It used to be the time to drive home to see Mom and Dad, to have a bunch of food, exchange gifts if it was Christmas, and just enjoy one another's company. Now... I don't have that. It's strange. I feel like that was such an integral part of the holiday experience that now, without it, I barely register the holidays at all. I didn't mind working Thanksgiving or Christmas at my news job. It was just another day for me. I wonder, then, if that's something any of my characters experience. I mean, spoiler alert, there's no Christmas scene in The Paladin, but if there was, how would Jonathan react to it? Reagan? Giz? I wonder what fond memories they have of a time before demons and monsters were real. Did they lose the holidays, too? Well, whatever the case, I do hope every one out there has a lovely Thanksgiving (if you're in the US) and wonderful holiday season after that. Be Excellent to Each Other.
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So WWE just offered a deal to get the WWE Network for free for the next three months. I've been considering whether or not to pick up the Network for some time, but with an offer like that, I couldn't resist. It's been fun getting back into the current story lines of WWE, but something I didn't realize I missed was the story telling itself. There's a great YouTube video I highly recommend (I'll add it at the end for your convenience) called "Wrestling Isn't Wrestling." It follows the amazing story line of a wrestler named HHH (Triple H) from his beginnings to his (almost) current position as a higher up in the company. It details how pro wrestling is a live action comic book where gladiators and gods clash and battle for the entertainment of the masses. In it, the guy telling the story has a great quote about wrestling: "Wresting can be bad, but when it's good, it's f---ing good!" I decided to watch NXT, which is like the minor league specifically for WWE. Talent that is brand new or otherwise needs time to perfect their game is put here like a farm league. These guys have so much determination to make a name for themselves that they put on extraordinary matches sometimes. In just one little PPV (a free one for me!) I've gotten to see some amazing stories of determination, adversity, and a desire to be acknowledged. Now, I know I'm not going to convert any non-wrestling fans with today's entry, but I hope you can understand and appreciate all the places a good story can be told. In a book, in a show, in a play, in a movie, and yes, most certainly in the ring. Enjoy. This video is freakin' amazing. And language warning... DFTBA. So I'm about two months into The Paladin's editing and querying stages. Things are starting to slow, though. I used to work with this website called Betabooks.co , but they just went to a pay model and all the betas I had on there stopped responding. It's... not the most motivating of feelings.
Right now I know that I need to cut a chunk out of my novel and I'm doing that word by word, sentence by sentence, but without those betas responding, I've lost a big resource. I've got a few other people off the site that have been helping, but life interrupts as it always does. So what do I do? Well, if you're reading this and you're interested in reading more of The Paladin, contact me and I'll gladly set you up with a review copy. Other than that, I just have to plod forward, step by step. I'm not sure I can get my novel down to 110,000 words, but I can drop it a few more thousand at least. That's all I can really do. Keep motivated. Keep writing. Keep editing. If I don't have things where I need them by the end of December, I guess I'll just have to query anyway. Wish me luck, peoples! DFTBA Alright, accountability time. Let's see where everything is standing with both the novel and the short story (#NaShoStoWriMo!)
I'm making small, incremental progress with The Paladin. As far as the writing, grammar, spelling and all that jazz, I'm nearly done with the current sweep, so that's great! Unfortunately, I still have the word cutting issue. I think I'm going to have to go back and watch Jenna Moreci's video on cutting words, because I'm making dents where I need to make holes. I'm hovering just about 140k words and, ideally, I need to get it down to around 110k. Now, it is possible that I could submit it as is and see what happens, but for a debut novel, it's probably too big to attract an agent confidently. Still, if I don't make enough progress by the end of year, I may have to just bite the bullet and do just that. Hopefully the quality of the story and the writing will keep my readers attention. I know that readers rarely argue about having a novel too long, but publishers sure do. Let's check in with my short story. I really need a name for it, but since it's not completely finished, I think I should hold off. So far, it involves the ancestor of one of the characters in The Paladin, an ancient vampire, werewolves, and Theodore Roosevelt. I'm going to be honest, I actually love writing him. I have done so much research on him that I feel I can appreciate him on a whole new level. A lot of the legends about him are completely untrue, but so much else about him is freakin' amazing that he's not dimmed in my perception in the slightest. And, to top it off, the youngest of his Rough Riders had psychic encounters, joined up at age 16, and was a prolific inventor with such patents as the Helio-Gyro-Copter (think an airplane with helicopter blades on top.) Back on topic, I'm coming along nicely with that at around twenty-six pages. This should translate into a good week's worth of blog posts, if not more. I'm very excited to share it with all of you as it allows a peek into the world of The Paladin, but one that's kind of out of date, if that makes sense. Again, it features a current character's ancestor and Theodore Roosevelt, so if you haven't put it together, this is in the past. The tech, the people, and the organizations that exist within the main novel are completely different, but they are certainly influenced by what happens in this short story. What about you guys? How's NaNoWriMo treating you? Have YOU written today? Don't forget to be awesome! So when you create your story, you have a few options. Some people create entirely new worlds, which is great for control, but man do you really have to pay attention. If you have magic, you have to create rules. If you have countries, they need a leadership model. There's so much to put together that it can be overwhelming. On the other hand, you can always just put things in an existing world. Saves a lot of time and hassle, but you have to make sure you know the world. That's why the general advice for first time writers is to "write what you know." If you're from a small mid-western town, make your character from a small mid-western town. If you've worked your life as a grocery clerk or a cashier, let your protagonist have a similar job. If you try to venture outside that, you're going to have to do some research.
We've all been there. You read a book or watch a television show and you think, "Jeez, that's not how cars work!" or "C'mon, no one from Montana talks like that." It's super prevalent in cop dramas, mostly because the genre has reinforced itself. But at the same time, if you go full original, you better keep extensive notes, because you know your readers are going to point out that on page 127, the hero clearly used the magic feather without reciting an incantation, even though later, in chapter 14, it's stated plainly that the feather will not work without the incantation. Or perhaps your mysteriously side character mentions they used to be a thief, then your party gets stymied by a locked door. The reader's gonna be wondering why Mister Mysterious isn't picking that lock! Point is, there's a lot of pros and cons to each. I've played with both, to be honest. My Nikrose story is completely original (or as original as High Fantasy can get,) so I had to invent magic systems, continents, kingdoms, animals, and so much else. It got really hard to keep track of it all when I just wanted to write! Contrariwise, I've written some humorous short stories about two goof balls in a small town. Easy to keep track of, no world to construct, I could focus entirely on the story... but it was lacking. No magic, literally or figuratively. So I believe in The Paladin, I've found a middle ground. I haven't had to create a completely new world, I've just had to figure out how that world would react to the reality of demons and vampires. Now, whether I've made things easier on myself, I'm not entirely certain. I still have magic systems, per se, that I have to keep track of. I have rules for how creatures act and are killed. I have an entire organization of Paladins to figure out and keep consistent. But, at least they can sit down for a cup of coffee without me having to call it "jitter juice" or "energy elixir." Be Excellent to Each Other! Ready to fight me? Today I've decided to share another song that really helps me get involved in the desperate, dark moments of the story. I give you Sound of Silence... as performed by Disturbed. I feel like people are really divided on this one. Let me just say I have nothing against Simon and Garfunkel. They're great! But sometimes a cover can produce emotions and carry a power that the original just doesn't. That doesn't take away from the original, it just lets you enjoy it a different way. I mean, look at Hurt as performed by Johnny Cash. That was a cover! Nine Inch Nails made that originally and there's nothing wrong with their version, but man... you can't say Johnny Cash didn't give the world something new with his cover. I feel the same with with Disturbed's cover of Sound of Silence. That voice... that grit... that passion... it really tugs at something primal and dark within me, and that helps me really dive into some of my darker scenes. I hope you can enjoy it, too, even if you love Simon and Garfunkel. DFTBA Coast City. Gotham. Metropolis. New York. San Francisco. Los Angeles. Whether real or fictional, your story needs a setting. Being that The Paladin is Urban Fantasy, that is, fantasy set in a modern setting, it needs an urban setting. So where does it take place?
Let me keep that under wraps for the moment and explore the necessity of the setting. Now, we know that for the most part, in DC comics all the cities are fictional. The aforementioned Gotham, Metropolis, Bloodhaven... they are all iconic cities that elicit a certain feel. There's something to be gained by creating a city, even a country, all your own. You get to dictate the culture and customs, what the topography looks like, even the food! But Stan Lee, the great Messiah of Marvel comics and cameo-haver extraordinaire said that when he made Spider-Man, he wanted him in New York City. Why? Because Stan knew New York. He wanted to be able to connect with his heroes. To know that Spider-Man was swinging past buildings he knew in real life, expressing opinions about daily life in a culture he was immersed in. Now, let's come back to The Paladin for just a moment (I mean, it is supposed to the focus, right?) When you're writing a novel, you three choices, basically. First, create a brand new city. Second, use an existing city. Or third, don't actually name the city. I've elected the third option. Now, this might seem like a cop out, but I promise you, I've done some heft research. From Wikipedia to YouTube to TVTropes (they have amazing articles on individual states and cities!) I've researched the crap out of this place. I assure you, The Paladin takes place in a real city, in a real state in the US. Where might that be? Well, frankly, the actual location hasn't been important to the plot. I've yet to find a reason for any character to mention the name of their city or state (Come on. How often do you give audible exposition about what city you're in? You know where you are!) But, if there are any crafty readers out there that pay attention, there should be more than enough clues to give it away throughout the novel. I'm kind of taking a hybrid route here. For all intents and purposes, The Paladin may as well take place in a fictional city for all the importance it holds. Yet, I crafted everything in the area to feel just like a real place. The distances. The names. The food. The geographical features. It's all real. But I have one lovely little bonus: if my research failed and I got something wrong, I haven't officially named the place so no one can say I got it wrong. -insert knowing wink, ala Superman cartoons circa 1966- DFTBA Its no secret to those that have come with me on this long journey to see The Paladin published that I've taken a lot of influence from the stories all around me. Really, as writers that what we do: its an endless cycle of telling another person's story. In fact, I recall my professor in college explaining to me that despite other theories, there are really only two stories in the world: someone leaves town or someone comes to town.
Now, within the confines of the novel itself, I've made sure to keep my references light and not too terribly blatant. I like to think that a good portion of them are almost like Easter Eggs, waiting for sharp-eyed readers to ponder a curious section of text, do a little research, and discover a clever little reference that might give them a smile. But beyond The Paladin, I'm also writing other things, one of which right now is a ... what should I call it? Well, it's a short story that, indirectly, leads into the events of The Paladin. Eventually. I don't know that it falls within Urban Fantasy like the main novel. There's a significant historical portion to it, but I'm not sure it's historical fiction. Let's just call it a taste of the extended world of The Paladin, shall we? The point I'm making is that within this short story, I'm taking a lot more liberties with my references. I'm sure some readers might get through it without noticing a single one, but I'm certain that others will stop every page or two, eyebrow quirked and, hopefully, smiling as they say aloud "Really?" In any event, I feel that the reader will certainly be entertained, one way or the other. Back on track, I do have to ponder this question with every page I write. There's nothing today that isn't influenced by the stories of yesterday. One must walk a careful path, balancing the influence that cannot be avoided with care not to directly copy another person's work. Much like my worries about the lore of monsters and what they're vulnerable to or what abilities they have, this, I think is largely in my head. I don't honestly think I'm stepping on any toes here, but it's still good that I worry about it. It keeps me honest and keeps me creative. Still, entire genres of fiction can owe their existence to single works. What fantasy writer doesn't draw some measure of influence from Tolkien? Even those that despise Tolkien know that he set the standard from which all works moving forward would draw comparison. So, for now, I will press forward. Where I think a nod to the creatives that came before me is due, I will indulge, but I will not worry about whether I'm potentially copying someone who came before. Be Excellent To Each Other Oh boy guys. It's finally here. I was on Smash Fiction! -cue rampart celebration-
So my good friend Miles Schneiderman created and runs this podcast, which is basically a "who would win" scenario. He's been asking me forever if I'd be interested and I thought it would be fun. Let me tell you, it was incredible. But, I think you might need a little background to understand why I loved this so much. I started actually listening to the podcast a couple years ago. I was working as a photojournalist in Las Vegas and on the weekend I'd be sent out on VOSOT patrol (VO = Voice over or b-roll/background shots, SOT = Sound on Tape or sound bite/interview.) So one boring patrol day while I'm trying to get weather shots (no flags, no trees!) I decide I might as well check out that podcast Miles keeps going on about. Episode 1, Terminator vs. Predator. I was hooked. I binged through this geek fest of profanity and BS quickly and found myself waiting impatiently each week for the next episode. Now, at this point, I've not only listened to the entire catalog, but transcribed a few episodes for them to help out. I know their voices, mannerisms, and even their basic strategies going into a match up. Now, it's my turn. I research the CRAP out of this thing. Seriously, if you want to understand the research I've done for The Paladin, listen to this episode of Smash Fiction and you'll get a taste of the research I do. The day arrives. I'm in front of my mic, earbuds in, I'm listening to Dan Mulkerin do his intro to the show and... suddenly it's quiet. Oh crap! I'm supposed to talk now. It's not a matter of stage fright, not by a long shot. I legitimately kept forgetting that I was a part of this. I listened to them all and just thought it was the next podcast, so my brain went into cruise control! It is so weird. Imagine you're sitting down to watch a morning show, Wake Up -insert your city here.- You're plopped on the couch all comfy and then the host looks at the screen and says your name, then everyone goes silent. They're waiting for you to pitch in on the conversation. That's what was happening to me. All in all, it was an amazing experience that I hope to repeat someday. If you like my stuff, you'll love theirs. If you like nerd debates, you'll love this show. If you like stupid conversation amongst friends that don't really go anywhere, you'll LOVE this show. Anyway, that's enough of me stroking their egos. My book... thing... is going well, too. Check out the episode here: Smash Fiction Facebook @SmashFicPodcast Smash Fiction YouTube Smash Fiction Patreon God, I love that portmanteau. I mean, NaNoWriMo is good, but NaShoStoWriMo is just so fun to say! Say it with me! Come on! Oh right. The point. Well, I'm making good progress on my short story while still focusing the majority of my attention on editing the novel. It's kind of hard to figure out when I need to focus on one or the other. I feel good in that this story connects into The Paladin, it gives a good little backstory for one of the characters in the novel. On the other hand, I'm looking at the word count for the novel and it's remaining stagnant. It's funny. This is typically the month where you're trying to get more words, but right now my novel is still sitting at ... 142,221. Yeah, it's not great. But I suspect I should be able to make a big dent in that soon. I'm trying to combine a few chapters, but figuring out what should stay and what should go is tough.
But back on the short story front (#NaShoStoWriMo !) I'm making good gains. The characters are fleshing out with every paragraph, and the story has actually increased from the outline I had. I'm very pleased with it. So... I guess that averages out? DFTBA |
Matias TautimezKeep your eyes open for my debut novel, The Paladin. Archives
January 2023
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