fantasy | Meredith Mansfield, Author

Posts Tagged ‘fantasy’

Switching Gears

Posted in writing, tagged conflict, fantasy, first drafts, Middle Grade, Multiple Projects, revisions, serialization, writing, Young Adult on May 15, 2013| 2 Comments »

This morning, I finished up the revisions to my middle grade fantasy adventure, MAGE STORM. Well, this round. I can set it aside for a while, but I’ll want to give it another read through before I hand it off to beta readers next month, just to make sure I didn’t create any new problems.

So, now I’ll be getting my head back into my work in process, MAGIC AND POWER. I left two of my characters really angry with each other. Well, one was spitting fire–not literally. It’s fantasy; I have to be careful about metaphors like that. Some people might take it literally. Her magic is with plants, not fire. Although, the other character might have gotten a clue that if he’s ever going to argue with her again, maybe he should find a place with fewer trees. The other character is more confused. He expected some push back to what he was asking, not the (figurative) face full of claws he got.

So, now I’ll read through that last chapter and get ready to carry the story forward. The fun is really just beginning for these characters.

Also, don’t forget about FIRE AND EARTH. The introductory pricing of $2.99 will go up to $3.99 almost everywhere next week.

Also, new chapters of FIRE AND EARTH and BLOOD WILL TELL are available free on wattpad.

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Revisions (Again)

Posted in writing, tagged conflict, fantasy, first drafts, Middle Grade, Multiple Projects, revisions, sequels, serialization, writing, Young Adult on May 12, 2013| 2 Comments »

My current WIP, MAGIC AND POWER, is on temporary hold while I work through a particularly difficult spot in the revisions of my middle grade fantasy, MAGE STORM. The tricky spot is because I’m taking a section that originally had only two characters and revising it to include three characters. There are so many more possibilities for a bit of conflict between the good guys when there are three of them rather than only two. I think it will ultimately work better, but that doesn’t make it easy. Especially when I’m trying to be very careful about adding too much to the word count.

I love MAGE STORM. Always did. Here’s the pitch (which will need more work):

Like everyone else, Rell believes that magic died along with its users at the end of the Great Mage War. All that’s left are the violent, semi-sentient mage storms made up of the ashes of the magic users killed in the war. Then he’s caught in a mage storm and infected with magic he doesn’t know how to control. Rell must find someone who can help him learn to deal with this gift for his own safety and that of everyone around him. If he can’t, that fire he accidentally started in the barn will be nothing compared to what the magic will do to him. If he succeeds, Rell could begin healing the damage caused by the war and ending the mage storms forever.

I’ve already got ideas for three sequels to this one, more trouble that Rell and his friends can get into.

Of course, that’s never all I’m working on.

Don’t forget FIRE AND EARTH. (I have to find time to do some more promotion for this one.)

As always, new chapters of FIRE AND EARTH and BLOOD WILL TELL are up on wattpad.

Oh, and I finally figured out how to do the European 4 in 1 chain mail pattern:

Happy Mother’s Day everyone!

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Potpourri

Posted in writing, tagged characters, conflict, e-publishing, fantasy, first drafts, Learning, marketing, serialization, writing, Young Adult on May 8, 2013| Leave a Comment »

A little of this and a little of that, today.

Work progresses on the WIP, MAGIC AND POWER. It had slowed to a crawl for a couple of days as I had a really difficult scene to write. It’s one where my main character is assailed by doubts and is unprepared to make a difficult choice. I’m sure that it’s one that’s going to need plenty of work in the revisions to strengthen it. Sometimes int the first draft, you just have to put down what you can and move on. Now I’m on the scene where my characters can get really angry with each other. This one’s going to be a lot more fun to write.

In other news, Amazon made me really happy this morning when this turned up in my inbox.

Gotta love free advertising.

On the chain mail front, I know I haven’t posted anything recently. I finally ran down a new set of instructions for European Four-In-One. This is the standard pattern of actual chain mail used as armor back in the middle ages.

Sometimes, it just helps to try something a different way. That’s what finally worked for me with the helm pattern. The different perspective can just help it make sense. It works for writing, too, by the way. Stuck on something? Try writing it from a different point of view.

Also, as usual, new chapters of FIRE AND EARTH and BLOOD WILL TELL are available on wattpad. You know, though, it’s going to take over a month to get to the end at two chapters a week. Both books are available on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, and other places.

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The Importance of the Central Conflict

Posted in writing, tagged conflict, fantasy, first drafts, revisions, serialization, short stories, writing, Young Adult on May 5, 2013| 2 Comments »

The central conflict is what drives a story forward. Without that, you have a vignette, maybe a very long vignette, but not a story. I learned this 0ne the hard way. I learned it with the second book I wrote after I got serious about writing. (We’re not counting that thing under the bed I wrote in college, all right?)

I wrote roughly 100,000 words and, literally as I was writing the last page, I looked up and realized that it didn’t come out to a story. I had characters and a setting and things happened, but I knew instinctively that it didn’t come out to be a story. I’m ashamed to admit how many different things I tried to fix before I realized the real problem. It didn’t have a strong central conflict that unified all those things that happened to my characters and made the final resolution feel like, well, like a resolution.

Lesson learned. I’m willing to plunge into a project, particularly a shorter project, and discover the story as I go. But I won’t start anything until I feel I have a handle on the central conflict.

I’ve mentioned before that my current project, working title MAGIC AND POWER, has surprised me more than once. The first surprise was when it decided to grow from an intended novelette or maybe novella into a full-fledged novel. It’s currently at almost 58,000 words and I project 65,000 to 70,000 when I reach the end of the first draft. (It’ll grow a bit more in second and third draft. They always do as I flesh out descriptions and give more attention to the secondary characters.)

Why this is a problem and how it relates to the title of this post is this: the original conflict for a nice little novelette can’t sustain a novel. I’ve had to work in a bigger conflict and allow the original to become a subplot. Unsurprisingly, this is something that’s going to need a lot more attention in the next draft. It’s sort of a hodge podge right now. But it has to be done for the whole thing to come together.

The irony of this situation is that I took up this story at this time (intending it to be much shorter) as a way to keep the writing muscles flexed while I try to work on the central conflict of what I intended to be my next novel. The best laid plans of mice and men . . .

Don’t forget, FIRE AND EARTH is now available just about everywhere.

And, as always, new chapter of FIRE AND EARTH and BLOOD WILL TELL are available free on wattpad. (Although, if you like the stories, you can read them much faster then two chapters a week if you buy a copy.)

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Stirring the Pot

Posted in writing, tagged characters, conflict, fantasy, first drafts, serialization, writing, Young Adult on May 1, 2013| 2 Comments »

It’s what we writers do. We put our characters in situations and just when they think they’re getting comfortable, we stir things up and make them uncomfortable again. After all, stories require conflict.

So, I’ve posted before about the love triangle in MAGIC AND POWER. Well, it hasn’t been that much of a triangle, really, until now. The main character had a boyfriend back home, before she left for school. She’s just developing a relationship with a friend/potential boyfriend at school. But, since the two potential love interests have never been in the same place, it’s not too complicated. Guess who’s about to show up at her school. (Where’s that evil little emoticon when you need it.)

So that’s what I’m working on now at about the two-thirds mark in this story. Things are getting a lot more interesting.

Meanwhile, I’m still trying to find new ways to promote FIRE AND EARTH.

Also, as usual, new chapters of FIRE AND EARTH and BLOOD WILL TELL are available on wattpad. (Or, if you want to read faster than two chapters a week, check out the “My Books” page for links to where both are available for sale.)

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Romantic Complications

Posted in writing, tagged characters, conflict, fantasy, first drafts, Romance, serialization, writing, Young Adult on April 28, 2013| Leave a Comment »

Oops. Got busy writing and almost forgot to blog.

So, now that FIRE AND EARTH has been launched, let’s get back to the new story. This is the one that was supposed to be just something short to work on while I got ready to write my weird Oz story. It’s approaching 50,000 words, so yeah, not that short.

Anyway, I’m in the middle of the romantic complication. This time, I’m trying to write a love triangle, something new and different for me. Right now, my main character should be thoroughly confused. I’m sure I haven’t gotten that strong enough, yet, but that’s what first drafts are for. Everything doesn’t have to be perfect the first time through. It has to be as close to perfect as you can make it the last time through.

So, coming up in the next couple of chapters are the places where the rivalry between the two love interests will really heat up and . . . the choice. Should be fun. Also, a challenge. I have to keep both guys as credible choices even though I know which one will ultimately get the girl. At least, I think I do. This story has surprised me twice already. Well, that’s what keeps writing interesting, isn’t it?

Also, new chapters of FIRE AND EARTH and BLOOD WILL TELL are available on wattpad.

FIRE AND EARTH finally showed up on Barnes and Noble.

And there’s a giveaway of a copy of FIRE AND EARTH on Goodreads.

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Print on Demand

Posted in writing, tagged e-publishing, fantasy, Learning, Multiple Projects, publishing, serialization, writing, Young Adult on April 24, 2013| 4 Comments »

As part of publishing FIRE AND EARTH, I tried something new.

For the first time, I also made a print version available. Print on Demand services like Amazon’s CreateSpace make this possible, now. Nobody has to pay for a large print run. Copies are printed when ordered.

That’s not to say it’s just as easy as uploading a file. Neither is e-book publishing, come to that. There are various formatting issues that have to be solved with e-book publishing and those aren’t immediately obvious the first time or two. But then the learning curve kicks in and it gets easier.

Formatting for print, without having access to desktop publishing software, has its challenges. Certain quirks of MS Word made it more interesting. It wasn’t until I got the proof of FIRE AND EARTH that it finally became clear to me. What word showed as the left-hand page was reall, in print, the right-hand page. Ah. No wonder I hadn’t been able to make sense of the margins. (You see, you have to leave a larger margin on the inside so the print doesn’t run into the binding and disappear.)

Well, now that I’ve figure it out, I might as well capitalize on the learning curve. So, in the near future, I will be adding a print version of BLOOD WILL TELL and also probably a collection of the three shorter pieces I currently have available as e-books, “Heart of Oak”, “The Music Box”, and “Becoming Lioness”. In fact, BLOOD WILL TELL is almost ready to go. I just want to tweak the cover a bit. That dragon bothers me just a little when the cover is blown up to 6″ x 9″. The edges are a little rough.

In other news, new chapters of FIRE AND EARTH and BLOOD WILL TELL are available on wattpad.

Next post, back to work in progress, MAGIC AND POWER (which is likely going to need a new title). This one is now over 46,000 words, so, yeah, it’s going to be a novel.

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Fire and Earth is Launched

Posted in writing, tagged e-publishing, fantasy, marketing, serialization, writing, Young Adult on April 21, 2013| 2 Comments »

It’s finally here. The launch day for FIRE AND EARTH.

Seventeen-year-old Casora has been raised to be a fearless warrior, commander of the faceless war band known as the Deathless. Nevertheless, she and her company are helpless to stop the invasion of their homeland. Without a country, the Deathless offer their services as mercenaries to the next land attacked by the same raiders who conquered their nation.

As the youngest prince and the one least likely to be of use in the war, Tiaran is about to be forced into a political marriage to a girl he hates. Rather than be used to secure the loyalty of an opportunistic general, he secretly goes off to fight in the war himself. His first battle is about to be his last when Casora rides in to rescue him.

When these two unlikely partners join forces on the battlefield, they’ll shake the foundations of kingdoms.

You can find it in these places:

Amazon ebook

Amazon print

It hasn’t turned up on Barnes and Noble, yet, but it is on Kobo.

Please, spread the word. There’s nothing like word of mouth.

As always, new chapters of FIRE AND EARTH and BLOOD WILL TELL are also available free on wattpad (but it’s going to take you a long time to read it that way).

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One Last Deleted Scene

Posted in writing, tagged e-publishing, fantasy, marketing, serialization, writing, Young Adult on April 17, 2013| 2 Comments »

First, new chapters of FIRE AND EARTH and BLOOD WILL TELL are available on wattpad.

The files for the print version of FIRE AND EARTH, to be released along with the e-book version on the 21st, are finally ready. That was an interesting process. So, in honor of that, here is one more deleted scene:

The northern scouts had nothing to report and the southern scouts had not yet returned. Casora worked out her impatience by taking the berserkers for a training drill. The horses tended to be restive after the long winter and they were even worse with a berserker on their backs. It was almost like learning to ride all over again and they had to be able to fight from horseback as well as on foot.

They were executing a wheeling maneuver, more raggedly than Casora liked, when she spotted the riders. The flash of flying red hair was all she needed to identify her returning scouts and the dust cloud behind them explained their hurry. At her signal, Casora’s berserkers formed up into a flying wedge and galloped into place behind the fleeing scouts, covering their retreat.

Casora’s unit slowed, letting the lightly-armed scouts outpace them, and turned to hold the road. They waited while twice their number of Yriri became visible through the dust of their headlong gallop. As she braced herself for the conflict, Casora took a hard look at the Yriri’s mounts. Skeletal faces were topped by one, two, or three horns. What kind of beasts did these Yriri ride? She took a deep breath. Whatever they looked like, they smelled like horses. Narrowing her eyes, she took a closer look. Masks. The Yriri’s bridles were attached to fanciful masks. She sat back. Horses that had become accustomed to berserker riders weren’t likely to be spooked by that.

The Yriri pursuers shouted their war cry “Yririri” and clashed their weapons, eager for battle. Casora smiled. They thought their superior numbers would carry the day. They were in for a surprise. She gave the signal and the berserkers spurred forward.

The skirmish was mercifully short. Only two of the berserkers Changed, although all the others were caught mid-Change when the last opponent fell.

They’d have to stay out here until the berserker madness passed off for at least most of them. Casora did lead them half-way back to camp, though. The Change would be quicker from here, away from the overpowering smell of blood and shit and battle. Eager as she was for the news, she’d have to wait to get the scouts’ report.

Most of the berserkers were well on their way to being human again by the time Derian rode up with a relief force. Totally unnecessary, but she appreciated that Varana had kept her head and her priorities straight. Make sure of the battle first.

“Good,” she said to Derian. “There are enough of us now to keep the berserkers under control. Let’s get back to camp. I want to hear what the scouts have to say.”

“It looks like Artria,” Varana said as soon as they rode back into camp, not even waiting for Casora to dismount.

Casora smiled. The Deathless had a direction and a purpose again. “Derian, oversee the breaking of camp. The Deathless are going south.”

“What about Lord Haver? He’ll come back and find nothing but hard-packed ground,” Varana said.

“Serves him and Feloria right. It’s all they deserve from us, now.”

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Another Deleted Scene

Posted in writing, tagged e-publishing, fantasy, marketing, serialization, world building, writing, Young Adult on April 14, 2013| 2 Comments »

First, new chapters of FIRE AND EARTH and BLOOD WILL TELL are available on wattpad.

FIRE AND EARTH is on track for publication on the 21st–next Sunday. In honor of that, here’s another deleted scene from what used to be the first chapter.

Casora made her way back to her new desk at the back of the command tent and found an envelope on top addressed to her. News from home was always welcome. Normally, looking for and opening that letter would have been the first thing she did. She’d been distracted by the change of command and then by taking leave of Marcian and Varana. She sat back in the big chair and tore open the seal.

Casora,

You are probably cursing me for calling back so many of the experienced Deathless just as you take command. It’s not an easy task I’ve left you, I know, but you are equal to it.

The battle experience of those I have called is needed here. The mountain scouts brought word of an army of Yriri raiders on the march from out of the north. If they climb the mountains, they will be here before winter closes the passes. We need more young men and women to defend Astraea.

I am confident you will be able to pull the band together and train them over the winter.

Keep scouts to the north, in case the Yriri skirt the mountains and slip past us.

Your mother and brothers send their love. Grita sends hers, too. She’s glaring at me as I write this because you won’t be home for her wedding. She’s marrying the farmer’s son from up the road on Star Night.

Lead with Honor,

Your father

Casora’s throat constricted with worry. Marcian, Varana and the others weren’t returning home; they were riding into battle without her. And they didn’t even know it. Her father’d probably expected her to read the letter before they left and relay the information. She’d have to send a rider after them, to warn them. And set a scout to the north to safeguard the camp. “Ravan, send me two scouts.”

The young man twisted around in his chair. “Two scouts, Captain?”

She did her best to imitate Ledan’s command tone. “Did I stutter?”

“No, Captain. Right away, Captain.”

Casora sat back and read through the letter again. It didn’t make sense. If Astraea was under attack, why not send for all the Deathless? There was only going to be maybe one more skirmish here until spring. This border dispute wasn’t even Astraea’s war. The Deathless were only here to support their ally, Feloria. Well, that, and to get actual battle experience for the Deathless. If there was going to be a real war back home, surely that’s where they belonged.

She could almost hear her father’s voice, “Think like a commander, Casora.”

Well, then. Strategically, the reason a general would leave a fresh unit on his flank–potentially on the enemy’s flank–was as a reserve. Such units could turn the tide of a battle. Was that what Pa had planned for the Deathless? But winter was coming on and the passes would close soon. They wouldn’t be able to get back to Astraea until spring. It was to be not a single battle but a long-run war, then. And the Deathless were not only held in reserve, they were sitting right at the border with Astraea’s closest allies.

Remembering how young some of the new replacements had been, Casora realized one more purpose. Some of the youngest and least prepared had been gotten out before the battle started. All right then, it was her job to see that they were all trained and ready come spring. She was good at training and she’d have all winter to work on them. She could have all the Deathless in tip top shape by then, ready when they were called into the battle.