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:
Look at my rules three through five:
3. Ground your readers in the writing.
4. Don't show (or tell) everything.
5. Immerse yourself in the world of your writing.
These three rules relate directly to the imagination of the reader. The second rule refers to how much you show/tell your readers. Look again at the example from the first scene of Valeska.
Late autumn 2014 Gdańsk, Poland
A full moon hung above midnight Gdańsk. The dark medieval streets were wet and filthy. Puddles ringed with oily rainbows covered the cracked cobblestones. The moon shown in each of the puddles, reflected as a milky glow that was grimed with the floating sheen. The scent of saltwater and rotting fish rose with the night time tide, an unavoidable stench this close to the waterfront. At street level, the night was utterly dark. The very few modern lights along the crumbling cobblestone avenue shared little illumination with the ancient alleyways that pierced the darkened buildings on either side of the street.
George Mardling stepped gingerly to the alley beside an old shop and glanced down it. His eyes were already well adjusted to the dark. Still he flipped the night vision goggle over his left eye and scanned the alley. It was clear.
The late fall night was cold--George wore a suit and over it a black overcoat. He had a dark felt fedora on his head. That helped conceal the night vision goggle. The night vision equipment was very modern and compact. The organization had issued it to the field last month. The point was to get a lot of night visibility out of a very small package—it worked well, but the battery life was limited.
George was a tall and thin man. He liked to think his physique was like a body builders’, but he knew he was too thin. He also knew his face looked too young and too serious. More like a student or a professor than an agent. That was probably good for the organization.
George carried a Beretta nine millimeter in his jacket and a Beretta nine millimeter kurz in his waistband, he hadn’t unholstered either weapon—yet. According to headquarters, his target wasn’t supposed to be armed. According to his orders, this wasn’t an attack or an arrest—he was making a reconnaissance, a surveillance with a contact. If he could identify the mark, all the better.
Usually, George worked in a team--he was alone this time. His partner was busy, and this was supposed to be a simple intelligence gathering mission—hardly a mission. George moved across the storefront. It was an old toy store, but the building wasn’t on his target list either. He stepped carefully and quietly toward the next alley. If the mark wasn’t in the first alley, he should be in the second—that was what their intell said. George glanced down this alley and caught a slight movement—he noted a flare in his night vision goggle, obviously a human being. George eased into the alley. He saw something else move as well. The moment George stepped around the corner, something in his field of view moved very quickly. It seemed like an animal, but it didn’t flare much in the infrared—not enough for a person or an animal. Perhaps it was just a blowing piece of scrap. He stood a little straighter, puzzled, there was almost no air movement on the street or in the alley.
I've written about this before and it is worth reviewing again. Look at what I didn't show the reader, but I could have. For example, it just rained in the city. I don't need to show the reader that. I don't need to go into much more detail than I have. Some writers will tell you the color of the bricks--I don't because that is unnecessary and you can't see it--it's night. You can't see colors at night. I don't tell you much about George Mardling. I reveal mostly description. The reader doesn't need much more at this point because the focus of the initial scene is action and not introspection.
You don't need to show or tell everything because your reader will add in much that is unsaid through their imagination.
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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