Announcement: There is action on my new novels. The publisher renamed the series--they are still working on the name. I provided suggestions as did one of my prepub readers. Now the individual books will be given single names: Leora, Leila, Russia, Lumiere', China, Sveta, and Klava--at least these are some of the suggestions. They are also working on a single theme for the covers. I'll keep you updated.
Introduction: I wrote the novel Aksinya: Enchantment and the Daemon. This was my 21st novel and through this blog, I gave you the entire novel in installments that included commentary on the writing. In the commentary, in addition to other general information on writing, I explained, how the novel was constructed, the metaphors and symbols in it, the writing techniques and tricks I used, and the way I built the scenes. You can look back through this blog and read the entire novel beginning with http://www.pilotlion.blogspot.com/2010/10/new-novel-part-3-girl-and-demon.html.
I'm using this novel as an example of how I produce, market, and eventually (we hope) get a novel published. I'll keep you informed along the way.
The four plus one basic rules I employ when writing:
1. Don't confuse your readers.
2. Entertain your readers.
3. Ground your readers in the writing.
4. Don't show (or tell) everything.
5. Immerse yourself in the world of your writing.
All novels have five discrete parts:
1. The initial scene (the beginning)
2. The rising action
3. The climax
4. The falling action
5. The dénouement
The theme statement of my newest novel, Valeska, is this: An agent of the organization becomes involved with a vampire girl during a mission, she becomes dependent on the agent, and she is redeemed.
Here is my proposed cover for Valeska:
Where do these mysteries come from? I've mentioned before that a novel is a revelation of the characters. It is also a revelation of the plot and theme. The author's revelation of these are the mysteries that are revealed, but there is more.
In the real world, you never know everything about someone. In the real world, nothing ever works out perfectly or cleanly. In the real world, people don't really win arguments. One of the most salient features that makes a novel entertaining is the resolution of these things. Not that you necessarily know everything about someone, but that you think you do. Like I wrote recently about conversations in novels, the same applies for other resolutions and revelations.
There is a false (according to real life) quality to a conversation in any story or novel. It is the perfection of the conversation--it looks like a conversation in real life, but it isn't (it doesn't include all the incomplete sentences, inarticulate sounds, incorrectly pronounced words, etc.). Just as with conversation, novels represent a completion for a reader. In real life no one (or very few) win arguments, but there is a large human desire to be correct and to know truth. In a novel, a character can win an argument. In a novel, the world can have a perfect revolution. In a novel, an author can lead you to imagine you know everything about a character. The perfection of resolution in a novel is like the last note in a symphony. If the resolution is a perfect chord, the reader will imagine a completion. Entertainment in novels is about completion.
More tomorrow.
For more information, you can visit my author site http://www.ldalford.com/, and my individual novel websites:
http://www.aegyptnovel.com/
http://www.centurionnovel.com
http://www.thesecondmission.com/
http://www.theendofhonor.com/
http://www.thefoxshonor.com
http://www.aseasonofhonor.com
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