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:
Descriptions reflect the senses. There are five and only five: sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch. Most authors only give you sight. Talk about a constrained world. The first problem with a lot of the modern writing I see is inadequate description, but add to that, the description is only what is seen. Look, people have five senses--an author needs to engage all the senses of the reader.
This is something to note in your reading. If the author you are reading isn't writing about the other areas of possible description, the framework, the reader's imagination is supposed to cover will be missing a piece. This is not to say, the writer needs to set every scene with a list of what is seen, heard, smelled, felt, and tasted. It wouldn't hurt sometimes, but a list isn't what is necessary. What is necessary is a scene setting, a description, of the place and characters that gives us a human view of the world of the writing. As I mentioned, this view is only a framework for the reader's imagination, but an incomplete framework is pitiful, and complete framework conveys the writer's ideas.
As you read, look for the framework of description and then improve on it. You don't usually need more words--you need words. That is you need to focus attention on scene setting and character description in all five senses. If you are missing this part in your writing, work to add it in.
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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