While I’m writing my work in progress novel During the Blue Hour . I’m also working on a short story series for the same novel series. There will be different stories that will involve characters from the universe that I mention in the upcoming novels. I had planned to do this years ago . I just didn’t really have the time to sit down and do it. But now I will be concentrating on that and my novel series .
The short story series consist of right now about 11 short stories give or take. There might be more or changes to this list.
ANTHOLOGIES OF THE HOUR SERIES
Story 1: The First Kraldire
Story 2: In the Hour of Humanity
Story 3: Iron clad: The story of Annette and Cole
Story 4: TheViātors of the Caelum
Story 5: A Tale of Two Brothers
Story 6: The Apennine pack
Story 7: Refuge : The story of the Wolf Warrior
Story 8: Alpha
Story 9: The Eternals : The struggle between good and evil
Story 10: Pair Bond
Story 11: Red Envy
My plan is to turn these short stories into some sort of Chronicles about the history for my main character . In my first work in progress novel for the series my main character doesn’t know anything about the world of these werewolves. So she will read a history eventually. These histories will be mentioned in the second novel. Hopefully I will start that one next year.
These are some to look forward to now . I will try to blog them individually . The First Kraldire short story and an excerpt of IN THE HOUR OF HUMANITY: The Story of Zios is already up . So if you would like to read that . You can go ahead and read it now . There will be changes to that stories though. I ‘m not sure I will upload those changes . I will be submitting them to literary magazines or self-publishing them all together. So stay tune . Keep an eye out for them . And please when you read the short stories please leave your comments about the stories in order to improve them if needed.
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Have you wrote any short stories connected to your novels?
I want to know so let me know in the comments below.
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So, like you, I ‘ve heard that prologues are not thought upon lightly. Because they usually are skipped, sometimes boring or are simply not necessary.
Last year I recorded a prologue podcast episode about the origins of prologues. I liked researching for that episode. I will be recording another podcast about prologues sometime in the future.
But right now, I want to talk about the prologue in my novel that almost wasn’t. What do you mean almost wasn’t?
Well, my current prologue.
I had this same prologue in my first draft. I chose to take it out for my 2nd draft because when I was back in college some years ago, an English professor read the draft and well he ripped the prologue out because he said he simply did not read prologues.
I was kind of devastated because I worked really hard on it, and it has everything to do with the rest of the story.
My prologue is called The Magical World of Wonder and is centered on my main character’s best friend Gabby and her family. It’s very magical indeed. Not only does the prologue involve a snow globe, a music box and a werewolf but it plays with and triggers pretty heavy and intense secrets that are buried within the town and also along with Gabby’s family secrets. But It’s one of those prologues where there is a character that doesn’t appear anymore throughout the novel again. (Spoiler alert).
It’s hard to explain but it’s like a rewind fast forward scene. That can’t really be placed anywhere in the novel itself because the main character doesn’t see it or experience it. But it will bring the story kind of full circle by the end of the novel. And the character Gabby in the prologue is constantly mentioned throughout the novel by the main character and other characters. And what happens to Gabby in the prologue will come back to have heavy consequences on some of the characters within the main story. Especially Gabby’s family who are going to end up paying a heavy price for their deep and dark secrets.
So, I decided to put the prologue back in my novel. Even if readers skip over it, the readers will probably find themselves going back to it in the middle of the novel.
If you liked this blog post and you want to see more content involving my work in progress During the Blue Hour Follow & share . But first LET’S START A DIALOGUE
Do you think having a prologue is a good idea in the novel? Should the reader go back to read the prologue or is it a waste of time?
I want to know so let me know in the comments below.
You can also interact with the podcast on Gab @duringthebluehour
If you are like me and ever wondered about the werewolf genre within fiction and whether it was classified as horror or fantasy you want to read this post now because this is the post for you.
First before finding out what genre werewolves are classified under let’s look at the difference of what the fantasy genre and horror genre in fiction is defined as.
Fantasy Genre:
The fantasy genre within novel writing and literature features both magic and supernatural elements that evolve around made up and imaginary worlds , timelines and creatures . It usually has at least 8 sub categories
High or epic fantasy.
Low fantasy.
Sword and sorcery.
Dark fantasy.
Fables.
Fairy tales.
Superhero fiction.
Horror Genre
Horror genre is focused more on mood. In order to work it has to create an unsettling atmosphere and give its intended reader a sense of fear. Even though it may have fantastical elements within its genre, the setting is usually entirely realistic.
So I found an article called 144 Genres and Subgenres for Fiction Writing by Tonya Thompson and in the article werewolves are classified under monsters which is a subgenre of Horror.
But did you know there was another sub-genre that is considered in the realm of the fantasy genre?
It is called the paranormal genre or speculative fiction and this genre is a subgenre of fantasy. The paranormal genre consists of all of the monsters that go bump in the night which includes werewolves.
Whereas wikipedia has defined the werewolf genre and classified it as being a genre that can be categorized in both horror and fantasy
Just by looking at these two definitions of where the werewolf genre is categorized under we can assume that the werewolf genre is used both in fantasy and horror and can be used in an exceptional and varied storylines and plots because of the ancients roots the werewolf folklores stem from with its various re interpretations of the genre.
Thus a writer can draw from previous folklores and myths of werewolves in order to create a fantastical and horrific tale.
If you liked this blog post and you want to see more content involving my work in progress During the Blue Hour Follow and share that is important . THEN LET’S START A DIALOGUE
Are you a writer who writes about werewolves in the horror or fantasy genre?
I want to know so let me know in the comments below.
Completed yet another scene for my 14th chapter in my 2nd draft . 2750 words, not all in one day though.
This scene features the main love interest Cristen’s POV where he has to struggle and come to terms with his mother lying to him about who Sirena really was and is in fact also a werewolf like them.
This scene is yet another confrontation with him and Adrian about who Sirena really is and what she means to the yearling pack at this point .
This scene does contain a flashback scene with Cristen interacting with both his parents before they were killed .
In the flashback scene it reveals that Cristen’s mother gave him Sirena’s father’s journal that tells who she is. But his mother tells him no matter what happens don’t ever read the book just give it to Sirena when the time comes. And she also has him believe that Sirena is just a human girl.
So this is why he as my character is seen struggling.
He is supposed to be an alpha but doesn’t know the truth to anything . And he is mad because his rival Adrian knows more about Sirena than he does himself.
And the thing is in my story is that he cannot be challenged as an alpha unless he is in the community of werewolves during their ritual bluffing ceremonies . So Adrian tries to make little small jabs at Cristen whenever he can get the opportunity to because Cristen knows that Adrian wants to be the alpha of the yearling pack.
So this is the point of where I’m at and at the end of the scene Cristen screams towards Adrian ,
” Until we get to Aquilum, don’t you dare challenge me again,” he said. Before Adrian or anyone could object Cristen picked up the book and raced out the door.
Adrian just spilled the info that Cristen is the one who killed Gabby in the mountains.
The next chapter will be back in Sirena’s POV . I’ll keep you updated on this next scene within chapter 14. I’m thinking about combining two scenes into one for that scene .
If you liked this blog post and you want to see more content involving my work in progress During the Blue Hour Follow and share . THEN LET’S START A DIALOGUE
Have you ever had a character who belief system as they know it was broken down because they were challenged by the other characters?
I want to know so let me know in the comments below.
Yesterday I had a poll open for which title to name my 14th chapter . The titles being three; A New Reality , Awoken Dreams, The yearling den.Only two people voted but those two votes went 50/50 with the two appealing titles ; A New Reality and The Yearling Den .
So this is what I did. The main chapter 14 is entitled A New Reality and the first scene in the chapter 14 will be entitled Inside the Yearling Den.
CHAPTER 14 SUMMARY
Sirena awakens insides the yearling cave to find Cristen and the rest of the pack arguing and discussing her. Cristen struggles to make a decision to tell Sirena who she really is. While Xavier and Mary devise another plan to capture Sirena .
Yesterday I was able to finish the first scene which came to 778 words .
And I went ahead and named it inside the yearling den because Sirena the main character literally wakes up in the yearling den in like a kind of hole within the cave that wolves in real life usually sleep in. The hole is large within the cave . In fact the cave itself has many large holes within. the walls of the cave that surround a large body cenote and waterfalls.
But within these shallow holes it is dark and so Sirena is basically laying on like a makeshift bed of sticks , twigs and rocks and she is in pain being wounded from the previous chapter but however she is also scared when she wakes up within this darken hole in the wall. Of course because she doesn’t know where she is .
She only sees these beings with red eyes who look like her. And she hears that they have healed her but it didn’t work. Scared she remembers what happened to her and Eli in the previous chapter 13 and she sees a crawl space and literally crawls out of it to go after him .
I wrote this scene like this because her new reality hasn’t kicked in yet and it won’t for the rest of the novel until maybe the end . But this chapter will basically be the start of where she finds out about her true werewolf existence.
The next chapter will be in Cristen’s POV . I’ll keep you updated on the next scene within chapter 14.
If you liked this blog post and you want to see more content involving my work in progress During the Blue Hour Follow and share . THEN LET’S START A DIALOGUE
WHAT IS YOUR CHAPTER 14 LIKE?
I want to know so let me know in the comments below.
The best way I learned how to write characters in certain situations was not only to write an interview sheet or questionnaire but I also took acting classes back when I majored in film while in college. And I strongly believe every writer should take at least one. What does acting have to do with writing fiction novels?
Well in my opinion a lot really.
Taking the acting classes allowed me to find out that actors want the same things that writers want for their characters .They don’t want card board cut out characters. They want to be able to live and breathe them.
So like writers actors study their characters . They know them so much that they know exactly what the character’s fears are.
And this is important to do this for not only the actor but the writer. Both actor and writer has to be sure not give away too much of the character or give too little. I know it’s hard but if it’s done right both audience and reader can ultimately feel the emotion that the writer and actor is trying to convey .
Actors are also taught to stay rooted in the characters POV. By learning this through acting it helps the writer do that very thing and not to get sidetracked by head hopping.
Also when I learn about acting . I learned about how to write better dialogue . AND BETTER SUBTEXT. There are number of different ways to say something especially if you forget your lines. No real thinking allowed. You have to think quick on your feet .
Also you find out what creates laughs, what incites anger , what creates the tears .
Also how to deliver action. Sometimes when I sit at my desk and I write a scene find myself acting act the action. There is also some deep script and character analysis exercises that actors have to go through in their classes or training.
There are a thousand different ways to act a scene . Like how you write a scene.
In an acting class you can go all out. Act as wild and crazy as you want to develop the character to the level you feel is best . The same I can also say in writing. That’s one thing I liked acting classes . You could have fun.
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HAVE YOU EVER TAKEN AN ACTING CLASS?
I want to know so let me know in the comments below.
You can also interact with the podcast on Gab @duringthebluehour
You might say it is easy to write something with one character. But this is not easy at all. It is one of the hardest types of stories to write.
The short story I’m working on right now that is a part of my work in progress novel, During the Blue Hour only has one character. It’s about a deleted character from my novel named Zios, a werewolf who was once a wolf that has flashbacks and remembrance of how he became human. In the story he hardly interacts with anyone and it through the flashbacks it follows him showing how he survived .
One of the first things I was taught when I started taking my writing classes both in creative writing and screenwriting in college was how to write short stories and short films with only one to two characters. And I always wondered why the professors always started us off with doing that. Was it a test to see how well you wrote? Were they trying to break us? To weed us out of the crowd?
Usually these type of stories are common with short stories but can be seen in novellas and novels but are rare.
Famous stories that only have one to two characters are:
Allen Edgar Poe Tell Tale Heart
Jack London’s “To Build a Fire”
Hatchet Paperback by Gary Paulsen
A Girl Named Disaster by Nancy Farmer.
The Road by Cormac McCarthy .
The Beckett Trilogy (Beckett Trilogy) by Samuel Beckett
You see the list is not long. As writers writing regular stories we rely heavily on the character foil devices of the secondary characters to progress the plot
But writing stories with only one character or no dialogue no less requires lots of emotion and tension to carry the plot.
Tension is the key to these types of story whether it be for a novel or short story. Tension of course is some sort of conflict. Conflict is important in any and every type of story . Both tension and emotion can be as simply written by using behavior and perception of the character . What does the character notice? How does he react? Many of these types of one character stories are usually seen as post-apocalyptic and focus on heavily driven environment stories such as the THE ROAD andJack London’s “To Build a Fire”
Visualize locations that quickly and dramatically set the stage for your story.
You can also make your characters vivid and distinct by using appearance to help communicate the story’s meaning.
Another way to write a story with one character is to use internal dialogue or the unreliable narrator like Allen Edgar Poe did in the Tell Tale heart.
However just because you have a one character story doesn’t mean they can’t interact with other characters. Yes there is a loop hole to having one character without having a cast of characters. To do this you can have your one character have a flashback or interact with an animal.
If you liked this blog post and you want to see more content involving my work in progress During the Blue Hour Follow , Like , share . But first LET’S START A DIALOGUE
Have you ever read or tried to write a story with only one character?
I want to know so let me know in the comments below.
You can also interact with the podcast on Gab @duringthebluehour
There is not much out there about writing dance and ballet in the fiction novel . But yet there are tons of novels about ballet dancers . I have yet to read any of them. However, my main character Sirena is an aspiring ballet dancer. For me it was hard writing this; meaning my character being into ballet. How do you write a scene where your character is performing a ballet dance? I struggled with this question a lot but I came to realize the answer to this . It is complicated . You don’t write every step or mechanics of the dance . And so I had to try to do this a lot . And it took a while to do . I rewrote scenes over and over trying to get it right.
I also looked at the Original Dying Swan Dance by Anna Pavlova over and over again to try to figure out and mark the emotion points to see how I was going to write Sirena dancing the same dance .
And so in this 2nd draft I came up with something like this:
She stopped in the middle of nowhere and turned her attention to the night sky. the stars in the sky were said once to be propitious because of their glamorous shine. They were always floating it seemed careless and unfettered by any sort of dangers. That is what Sirena loved most about seeing the stars whenever they appeared .
Placing her bag and the cup next to a rock, she stood back straight, steadied herself, held up her head and glanced up at the waning stars.
Music played in her head; an orchestra of strings. Le cygne; a classic as old as time. She hummed the tune she had heard so many times before. She smiled with grace, towards a stage and audience that materialized before her.
Magic in her eyes she dreamily circled the stage with slow ,careful and precise steps.
She was now truly the Odette from the ballet. a symbol of harmony and beauty. Regal, refined, loving, and love lorn maiden-swan: airy, feather-light . She was bondage becoming unchained.
With rising motions, swift petite movements and spontaneity, Sirena as Odette fled an old world to a new one. not afraid to depart. desolation to exhalation. But Odette, the swan of swan lake wasn’t dying. Her life was starting. The ‘soul’s voyage. She greeted immortality. A final gesture indeed. But she wasn’t silent anymore. She flew. Odette’s lake flowed and carried her downstream. A lonely sacrifice of course. But she was finally free.
Le cygne ended abruptly in Sirena’s mind and she lifted her body off the ground catching her breath with swirls of euphoria abound, as the stage and audience faded away…
Needs a little work, I know. But what I try to do with this dance passage is to focus not on the mechanics of Sirena’s The Dying Swan dance of Swan lake but of the emotions and the actual scene and compare her with Odette as she dances . At the beginning I only mention it once that she is dancing. And in the middle I mention it one more time when she is making a transition. I try to make Sirena embody Odette and become dreamlike . She is Odette. Her fears , hopes and thoughts are one and the same in that moment upon which she dances. After the dance is done Sirena comes off of a sort of euphoria.
I try to make this dance passage relevant and significant to the plot of my story . With this scene I attempt to highlight the importance .The Dying Swan represent transformation. And that is why I use the Dying swan scattered throughout my novel but in different variations and interpretations because Sirena literally transformations into the werewolf as Odette transforms into the swan.
Before Sirena starts to dance she is seen outside in the mountains . I try to juxtapose where she is at physically to where she is at in her head when she dances and becomes Odette.
It is an artistic dance. Each dancer over the 100 years since the dance was performed by Anna Pavlova interpreted The Dying Swan in their own way , so I try to describe the scene of the dance in the best way pertinent to the Character Sirena.
Moreover , having Sirena , a character who is aspiring to be a ballerina is risky but I took a chance because I felt like I wanted to have my character interested in something besides just being a student or a regular artist or writer. Ballet and dance is important to my novel because of what it means to my character and the overall storyline and plot of my novel. I also use it as an obstacle for my character even though it is her desire .
If anyone reads this article and they are a dancer or writer who wrote about ballet please let me know your thoughts.
If you liked this blog post and you want to see more content involving my work in progress During the Blue Hour Follow , Like , share . But first LET’S START A DIALOGUE
HAVE YOU EVER TRIED WRITING A DANCE SCENE IN GENERAL?
I want to know so let me know in the comments below.
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Yesterday I was trying to look for the perfect song while writing the scene in my chapter 11. I ended up not writing anything because I spent all night looking for the perfect song. And the thing is I have a writing play list with already 104 songs.
That might seem crazy . I know . But sometimes when I’m writing I write with music because sometimes the music gives off the very vibe I ‘m writing about in the scene at the moment .
I try to find a song for each character , each scene and each chapter.
That takes a while. Sometimes I find music for an individual action and it is great.
I ‘m in the moment and I am able to write for a very long time.
But then of course there is those moments where I need silence to write.
I make sure the music fits the moods and themes of my novel. So since my novel is about werewolves in a post-apocalyptic world I have some pretty dark music. But also some light music moments because there is a glimpse of romance in my novel( note there is only glimpses of romance)
Here is 5 songs from my playlist for my novel so far .
Writer’s Playlist
If you liked this blog post and you want to see more content involving my work in progress During the Blue Hour Follow , Like , share . But first LET’S START A DIALOGUE
What songs do you play while you write your novel?
I want to know so let me know in the comments below.
You can also interact with the podcast on Gab @duringthebluehour
You want to know a secret about me? I ‘m not really keen about social media . I hate it. But in this day and age social media is the king and the go to for all types of business and everything else you can imagine when it comes to marketing your brand. So whether a person likes to or not they have to use social media to interact with the world and their audience.
This is only my opinion but I feel like for new writers and authors it is a catch 22 situation. Especially if you are an independent or freelance writer like me. Those old days when the publishers market your work for you has come and gone. Even then I feel like that was an old wives tale . You still had to market yourself back then too. Today you’re only lucky for someone to market your book if you have a number 1 bestseller. So independent writers must market themselves. And is widely known that you should always try to grow your brand or awareness of who you are before your book comes out for publication. That leaves us with social media. Like I said I’m not so keen on using social media yet I’m using this blog to tell you my opinion. I never really did well on other social media sites but I’m pushing forward and will make my books known wherever I can.
So today I’m working on researching a Pinterest account for Discovering the Blue Hour Podcast . I never really delved into Pinterest before.
I was told about Pinterest through a friend . I don’t really know anything about it. The closest comparisons I came to for it was it’s like Instagram. But I never really did well on Instagram. However I thought maybe I’d give Pinterest a chance.
But I have some questions first before I dive head first in another social media account. Here are my top 3 questions for creating a writer’s Pinterest account.
How can I use Pinterest as a writer?
How will Pinterest help me move forward as a writer and author brand ?
As a writer what are my goals for a Pinterest account ?
These are the 3 questions I’m exploring about Pinterest as I research to open my account. I will get back to you on my results later.
If you liked this blog post and you want to see more content involving my work in progress During the Blue Hour Follow , Like , and share . But first LET’S START A DIALOGUE
Do you have a Pinterest account?
I want to know so let me know in the comments below.
You can also interact with the podcast on Gab @duringthebluehour
