Announcement: We are in the countdown phase for the publication of my new novels. The date on the internet is 1 September. We will see how close we come, or if the publishers meet the deadline. My Aegypt novels will be titled Ancient Light, and the next two books will be called Sister of Light and Sister of Darkness. These were the original titles. They will be released individually and as a 3 in 1 volume. The proposed cover and info can be found at www.ancientlight.com. 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:
If you realize that a writer is not a thought controller, but rather an imagination herder, you will begin to understand the power of writing. The writer places elements into the mind of the reader, and the reader applies the imagination to make the plot and theme play out. This is why I use the example of scene setting like the stage of a play. No stage really looks exactly like any place in the world. Usually, the stage designer doesn't even try to make it real. They place enough paint and fake woodwork so the audience turns their framework into a house or a lawn or a bowling alley.
A novel is exactly the same, except instead of fake woodwork and paint, the writer has stronger tools. Words can weave a reality that isn't real at all. Some writers paint their scenes using metaphor and comparisons. Some writers just directly describe the scene. Some writers use their characters to describe the scene. Some just jumble it all up together. As long as you systematically set your scenes and provide strong descriptions for your readers, I'm happy, and you readers will be happy.
In my experience with many new novels, the writers do not know how to set the scenes or describe their characters. What you get is too much framework of action and adventure with too little paint or fake woodwork on it. This is like watching a black and white movie with blurry scenes and people. The writer needs to bring the characters and the scenes into focus and the way to achieve this is through description. Here's where reading is critical--and I mean reading classics. Pick up one of those old novels and read the detail the writers placed in their books. Look at the metaphors and descriptive phrases. You can see the pictures they want you to see. You should be able to see, hear, smell, feel, and taste each scene. That's next.
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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