The Holidays Are Upon Us

Been so-o-o busy lately, something had to give, and I guess it's daily blog posts that gave. I figured that as long as I was producing new pages of "Mongan Manor," I should concentrate on that within the time I have to work on writing each day.

Got past the stuck places and events are now unfolding at a furious pace. Almost at the turning-point scene that's been in my head for a while, but with a few revisions to the original form. Still waiting to see how the whole thing comes out.

I've also found my thoughts drifting to future projects. There are many of them:

• Finish third book in Jack Watson series. I stopped before because (1) the timing of it was off, (2) I wasn't sure where to go with it next, and (3) the inspiration for "Mongan Manor" was tempting me.
• Revisit manuscript of my first and second completed-but-not-published novels, both science fiction. Oh, do they ever need work . . .
• Another paranormal idea that's been shuffling around in my brain. This one would be really different--a male victim who gets involved in an investigation with a female cop and a paranormal investigator (also female) in an uneasy alliance against a new sort of creature. Still very much in the formative stages.
• Return to an unfinished manuscript from a few years ago, a medical thriller.  

But I'm trying to stay focused here and do one thing at a time. Maybe if I could clone myself...

The Final Edit?

Finished reading hard copy of "Where Power Lies" and I have started the painstaking effort to make electronic changes without introducing any new errors. Once that's done, its query time.

Since I got onto this editing pass, I haven't had time to consider the next phase of "Mongan Manor" as yet, but once again, it's one of those cases where I want to get through the buildup and on to the next action which will be a major turning point. I also have to work out the murder aspect. I have the players and motives arranged, I think, but how it actually happens has yet to be developed. Of course, Stefanie and everyone else at Mongan Manor will first find the body and have to work out how it happened. All that's down the road a bit, nothing more than an outline of events at this stage.

A friend of mine has been posting Halloween music videos (from YouTube) on his Facebook page for some days now, and one of them is a recently-discovered favorite for me. "Voodoo" by Godsmack. He laughs at the notion of what people who don't know me would say to my liking it, but people who really know me know I have a widely (wildly?) eclectic taste in music. Anyway, in response to his post, I mentioned how surreal it was to listen to the song (which I could not resist) at 7 a.m., and he said something about a new story line. I said I'd see what my imagination could come up with. Voila! An idea. Still very formative, but I'm intrigued by the notion of doing a horror story. Well, maybe not horror as the genre is usually taken to be. I'm not a fan of blood and gore because, as Stephen King once wrote, the icky factor is the lowest level of horror fiction. I'd rather try for the top level--pulling the reader into the story so that he/she feels the terror and horror of the characters. An interesting challenge...

Another Pause

I've got "Where Power Lies" pretty much where I want it now, I think. I'm going to give it a rest for a few days and do another full read through to verify I've made the appropriate points. The length is pretty good, at just over 82,600 words. When I finally apply the "Done" stamp to it, I'll do a synopsis and blurb and consider sending my latest "child" into the world.

I'm very excited get back to the newest Windsong Lake book. It's been started, of course, but I've been trying to lean on "Power" to get it closer to finished before letting my muse take flight with Stefanie.

I also have to get ready for Bookfest 2013 in Glen Ellyn in less than two weeks. Last night, I made up three signs for the table, one for each book series. A price sign is also required, as well as an up-to-date brochure to hand out. As to pricing, I'm considering offering a discount for anyone buy more than one book, maybe buy one book for $9 or any two for $16. I still don't know exactly which books I'll have on hand to sell, so the pricing thing might have to wait till the last minute. I would love to go to Bookfest, or to Joliet Author Fest, with a full complement of my books to offer, but I'm not sure if that's going to work out for timing. Also getting down to the wire is whether or not I'll participate in the pitch session at Bookfest. The one I wrote is for "Dabblers," but if I don't have a paperback on hand to sell, it kind of misses the point. We shall see.

Potpourri

Received my copy of "Seer, Tyro, Fiend" in the mail yesterday, and it was just as great a thrill as the others. Hopefully soon all of my published novels will be in both ebook and paperback, and I can hardly wait to order up for my coming library events.

I did resolve some issues I was having over "Where Power Lies." After a bit of research, my doubts about the cataclysm which sets the scene for the future world proved unwarranted. I don't include a lot of facts and science in the narrative, but I had to make sure that what I wrote would be believable. This morning, I checked part of the ending because I feared I had repeated something I used in "The Changeling Kill," but that concern was unfounded, happily. I also had another cover art idea, but I'm not sure if I can execute this one either. I hunted up some images on Google, so maybe I'll give it a shot. Kind of hate to break my cover-designing streak.

Finished the book I am slated to review for Windy City Reviews. I found I couldn't stop reading it yesterday and wound up pushing right on through to the end. This morning, I drafted my review, too, with great enthusiasm. I'll go back to it in a day or two with fresh eyes.

I'm thinking to maybe start on the new Windsong Lake book, working title "The Treasure of Mongan Manor."

New Book Planning

I finished another pass through "Where Power Lies," and I've decided to give it a rest for a few days before taking another one. One thing I will be thinking about, though, is the setup for my future world. A great cataclysm has changed the face of the country, but I fear the one I put in place is not sufficient to have brought about the destruction I envision. At first, I wanted it to be very believable, like something that could really happen, but now I'm thinking that I'll need to trump it up to something more fantastic, yet still believable.

In the meantime, I started doing some research for the next Windsong Lake book, with a current working title of "Treasure of Mongan Manor". The research started with Irish castles, then Irish names, and finally to Irish legends for the name of the central locale, Mongan Manor. Of course, that's not a real place, but I wanted a name that had meaning to Irish folklore. Between the Internet, and a wonderful resource book I bought years ago, "Myths & Legends" by Arthur Cotterell (1989, Marshall Editions Ltd.), I came upon Mongan, son of the sea god, exceedingly generous and able to change his shape. Considering my planned plot, it seemed like a good match. Considering Stefanie Durant's maiden name is Reardon, a variant of the Irish name Riordan, I figured the Irish angle would work well.

On another front, I'm reading a book for Windy City Reviews, so I've got a time frame of 4-6 weeks to consider. Actually, I'm about 20% through it already, so I think I can manage it and squeeze in some writing time, too.

Trying to Stay Focused

Taking another pass on "Where Power Lies," but my efforts are less tactical than I had planned. I wanted to go through the entire manuscript to make sure information about the state of things in my imagined future are clear, timely, and not repeated too much. Instead, I keep finding little things to change, tweaks to wording and such, and thinking of details to add in places.

I'm still troubled by a long passage in Chapter 2 in which Dee considers how things have changed in the world in the last twenty years or so, which of course provides the opportunity to describe what she's comparing them to, thus laying out how those changes came to be. I'm thinking that passage is too long and perhaps should be scattered around a bit so it doesn't read like a documentary narrative. Too much like an aside to the audience, taking the reader out of the story. Gotta work on that.

I had some new ideas for cover art and played around with some images here and there. This in addition to updating my various websites with the news about "Seer, Tyro, Fiend." And I made some notes about the next Windsong Lake book and did some research. That project is really starting to pull together with some scenes already "written" in my head.

Transitional Phase

First, I received confirmation yesterday that I will be participating in Bookfest 2013 in Glen Ellyn, Illinois. I'll be selling my books in the Glen Ellyn Public Library, signing them, handing out promotional materials, and chatting with readers. In light of that, I started updating those materials--websites and a book brochure--to reflect the coming September release of "Seer, Tyro, Fiend." I updated a booklet format to use and I'll have to begin printing. I also need to order books to sell.

I've made it through a polishing pass on "Where Power Lies," which I think is the title for "Resistance." It just seems to be a better one for a lot of reasons I believe I discussed in a prior post. More readings will be required because I think it's a bit long--85,000+ words, and I still need to make sure it flows properly and certain ideas are not restated as I think I may have done. This morning, I rewrote the ending, which I knew I would do after the first draft was complete. Now I like the way it ends because it offers hope for the situation to improve but also leaves the door open for more adventures in a new series. Don't know if I'm going to go there yet. No final decisions on the cover at this time either.

Next up is a third Windsong Lake book, as I've mentioned. I need to do some research on a few things first that will help me construct the mystery at stake. I may get started on this while I give "Where Power Lies" a brief rest.

Always Looking Ahead

"Resistance" is becoming more of a rewrite than I originally thought. I suppose I should have expected a lot of changes since choosing to reset it in the future. Even so, I'm excited by the way it's coming together. Yesterday's writing and some this morning have pushed the story closer to the big scene, the climax, and the pieces are falling into place. I'm still not sure how that scene will play out precisely, even though it will follow much of the mold as the old incarnation. I'm also unsure if I should leave the door open for a sequel or wrap it up in one book. There was a sequel almost completely finished long ago, and it was a pretty good story I think, but it too would have to be refashioned to fit into the new future setting. Ah well, one thing at a time...

And in direct opposition to one-thing-at-a-time, I've been thinking more about the third Windsong Lake book. I had a burst of inspiration to add a sort of treasure hunt aspect to the plot which would mesh well with Stefanie's pattern recognition skills. In order to do that, though, I have to figure out (a) what is the treasure and (b) what kind of puzzle or clues will lead to it. My ideas on that are vague at this point, but the concept gets me very excited. Creating puzzles is even more fun than solving them.

Sometimes It's a Struggle

I've spent a lot of the morning on "The Janus Rule" and the tricky scene I mentioned in yesterday's post. A lot of writing dialog and then back tracking to change it. How much to reveal? Should this be a new area of conflict or the resolution of one? What suspect should it point to? I want each major character to suspect someone else, and maybe one of them actually targets the right person. The Jack Watson books have always been complicated in this way with multiple points of view and devious plots by bad guys.

A few things I want to do differently with this book, however, remain in my thoughts. One, no F.B.I., which was involved in both "Dreamer" and "Changeling." I don't want it to become predictable, and the idea of a P.I.'s cases always leading to a crime of federal magnitude seems a bit preposterous. Two, I want unlikely heroes responding in unpredictable ways. In "Changeling," Jack wasn't the big hero in the end although he solved the puzzle. Time for him to be the tough action guy again? I don't know yet.

Over the last couple of days, I've also given more thought to another novel, the first one I ever finished and tried to market. It's the one that came back with all those repetitious phrases marked. I still like the story line, though, and the characters. It deserves a rewrite I think.

Then there's a third Windsong Lake plot I've been mulling over. I saw a picture posted on Facebook this morning that stirred the inspiration engine for it. I already have an exciting opening sequence, a set-up for the events to unfold, a crucial scene, at least one line of conflict. Maybe while I sort out my thoughts on "Janus," I should make some notes about this one.

What's Next

I started the editing process on "Seer, Tyro, Fiend" this morning. The first pass is always the toughest as I see so many things I want to change. In the first three chapters, I'm already looking toward the organization aspect, of making sure that there is a hook at the end of each chapter. I know I pay way too much attention to chapter length, but as I mentioned in an earlier post, I do this to be mindful of not letting things get too choppy and avoid ruining the pace, especially so early into the story. Long way to go on this one...

Since one story has been completed, I needed to start thinking about my next project. As I lay in bed last night, I found myself thinking about ideas I've had for another Jack Watson book. One inspiration came while my husband and I went through some old files of his. I made a joking reference to a line in a movie ("Burn After Reading") about secret files, and he told me about how some businesses prevent the dissemination of proprietary data. Voila! I had a case for Jack to investigate. Off goes the imagination to develop the idea and create a plot.

This morning, I spent a few minutes typing the ideas into the first document of a new folder on my computer (each book has a folder of its own). I know I also have some in the small notebook I keep in my purse. The ideas are scattered bits and pieces mostly, sometimes with questions. One big issue to be addressed is the antagonist. I have envisioned a stalker who will also have a point of view, dropping hints to the reader along the way. But the stalker needs development, a persona, a goal and motivation for his/her actions. I haven't even decided which gender the stalker is or who will be the one stalked. I want to keep the target ambiguous, a part of the suspense, as the other three point of view characters each suspect someone else with different motives.

The plot thickens, as they say, but therein lies the fun.

Crunch Time

Added some more to "Seer, Tyro, Fiend" this morning after the weekend's hiatus, and then I hit a brick wall. The time has come to set up for the big scene, and I don't even know the particulars of that yet. Who will be where and how will it be resolved? Should I have one more scene in which one of the conspirators is called to account? How close should that happen to the final confrontation? Oh, but wait! What about the objective in the story, the missing woman? What do I do with her? Bring her in? Keep her off stage until after it's all over? I have some ideas for things that should happen in order to weave together facts and events, but I think I really need to make a serious effort to consolidate it all. There should be excitement, suspense, drama, and a satisfying "crunch." I already know there will be a secondary crunch at the end which will close the loop on the story.

I'm already toying with a theme for a third novel in the Windsong Lake series, but it's just a broad stroke of an idea. This one might actually require some research first in order to explore the reincarnation aspect of Stefanie and Paul's relationship. To do that, I'm thinking about having them return to England and the place where Paul bought Stefanie her moonstone locket, the place that seems to inspire a lot of her paintings. One idea I had was to interleave their exploration of their history with what was happening in the time when they were first united. (If that seems confusing to anyone, I suggest reading "Dabblers" for references that help explain it.)

Before a third Windsong Lake, however, I feel compelled to do a third Jack Watson. I may have posted about this before, the idea of a stalker being one facet of the story with an embezzlement plot as the mainline case. I have a bunch of notes I wrote up some time ago which probably contain more details than I remember. It's why we make notes, right?

And then there's the inspiration for a sort of dystopian adventure which would be a major reworking of an earlier novel that I've rewritten a number of times already. That one sometimes calls to me, too, and would be something of a departure for me as the new incarnation will be set in the future.

Could I possibly work on more than one novel at the same time? I know I tried it once before and then dropped one when the other started coming together faster. Lucky for me, there are no rules for how to do this job, and I'll never know until I try.