A Writer's Week #149: Taking a Big Steppe Forward

 This week I wrote a relatively small amount of words--only about 700--but I came a long way. Shadra is currently travelling the steppes of Jongchin on foot, tracking an unknown foe. The book, still unnamed, has reached almost 4,100 words. As it stands now she has just met up with two comrades from her clan. What will happen? We shall see.

Also this week, I received a five star review from Readers' Favorite for the first book in the Dragon Island Legends series, Fire & Ice. 

Thanks very much to Susan Sewell for the following review:

In the enchanting children’s fantasy, Fire & Ice (Dragon Island Legends) by Gregory S. Slomba, the Silver Dragon of the North attacks the villages in the islands and abducts the children to work in its mines and fields. Fifteen-year-old Benchu and Mai-Lin were saved by the Golden Dragon when they were younger and now live in an orphanage. To avenge their parents’ deaths, they want to become Denchi Assassins. Then they will have the skills to take revenge on the Northmen and the Silver Dragon. When Benchu learns that he and Mai-Lin are being moved to the Dragon Palace, they run away to join the Denchi. A shabby old man finds them in an alley and takes them to Master, who promises to train them and introduce them to the Denchi. Instead, they are forced to pick purses. How can they escape Master? Will Benchu ever get revenge for the deaths of his parents?

Fire & Ice by Gregory S. Slomba is a captivating children's story with a meaningful plot and a well-developed storyline. The story is beautifully executed with the right amount of conflict, tension, and resolution. I enjoyed meeting all the characters, even the villainous ones; each is well-rounded and authentic. Relatable and engaging, Benchu's and Mai-Lin’s characters meet their challenges with realistic youthful rebellion and audacity. The setting and the dragons create a lovely story resembling a Chinese legend imbued with lessons grounded in moral strength and personal growth. Young and young-at-heart readers will enjoy this poignant and charming story.

So, honestly, this unnamed book 2 has been a little bit of a struggle as far as figuring out what path it's going to take to get to the ending I'm envisioning. But it's nice to receive a review like this. It encourages me that if I keep plugging away at the current book, it will all come out all right. I'll keep you updated on all its twists and turns in my next Writer's Week.

Peace

A Writer's Week #148: Forward Progress

Well last week was pretty eventful. One icy winter morning I slipped crossing the street and banged my head, receiving my first ever concussion. I've got to say it was pretty scary. I'm pretty much back to my old self now, so that's good. I've never been quite in my right mind anyway.

Anyhow, I spent about four days not moving around very much. The good thing was it gave me some time to do a little writing on the second book in the Dragon Island Legends series. I wrote about 2,200 words, so the word total is now at 3,400. I still have not come up with a title for it though.

Shadra, the 16 year old girl from the western Jongchin steppes, is rounding into form. I'm getting a good feel for who she is, although I think she will evolve as the story progesses. She has just experienced a tragedy, but now has a purpose.

I'm not quite sure what her journey will look like, but I do know where I want her to wind up. Will she arrive there when all is said and done? Maybe. She is headstrong and independent, so she might have other ideas. I'll wait and see. Sometimes characters take over and do something unexpected, and usually it's magic. I'm looking forward to seeing how things develop.

I'll let you know how things go.

Peace

A Writer's Week #142: Mission Accomplished...Almost

 The recent Labor Day weekend was very productive for me--perhaps the most productive two days I've had in my writing career. You see, I finished the first draft of my novella, Fire & Ice. What is noteworthy is not so much that I finished the draft, but that I wrote almost 8,000 words in two days to do it.

In the past, when I set a writing goal, it's been for 2,000 words in a week. I think the reason for this sudden flood of output has been that all the remaining plot snags figured themselves out all at once and I had some time free of interruptions. Really a perfect storm.

So what does this mean? It means that I've completed a novella of about 19,500 words and that I will soon look to get final edits and rewrites completed as well as commission cover and chapter art as well as a couple of maps. I still really love Daniel Vogel's map of the Dragon Islands, but I think this novella (hopefully series of novellas) needs a new version. I am also planning to have a map of Dragon Home done so we can finally see the layout of Ang's capital city.

The Dragon Islands have so much history. It's a place with so much storytelling potential, that I could easily lose myself in its history. I think young readers will feel the same. I stumbled upon the idea of writing a series of novellas when I read fellow author Kelly Jarvis' wonderful novella, Selkie Moon. 

It awakened me to a new method of storytelling--more than a short story and shorter than a novel. It got me thinking that perhaps this might be a good way to entice preteens to read more. The attention span of all Americans is decreasing rapidly. A novella might just be interesting enough to get them to start reading without the time commitment necessary for a Harry Potter-length book. Who knows, once they get into it, they might just move on to longer books and more involved adventures. Hey, it's worth a shot.

As always, I will keep you updated on the publishing process of my latest work. I will also fill you in on my plotting for the second novella in the series, which I'm thinking will involve smuggling in the Dragon's Neck. Stay tuned.

Peace.

A Writer's Week #134: Busy Times

 So I have to say that September was a very busy--and fun--month for me. I had three events during the month, which is quite a bit. They were all rewarding in their own ways. I was able to meet and greet young readers at all three, which is something I love above all else.

For me, the most rewarding experience I had was my author signing at the BookSmiths Shoppe in Danbury, CT on September 14. It was a fantastic experience. Michelle is extremely reading and author friendly. I can't tell you what it means as an author to have someone in the community as supportive of local authors and young readers.

At the event, I was able to share thoughts about my writing process and some of the experiences I've had on my author's journey. There were several young readers who were forming a book club and a couple that were writing their own books. One young lady had written almost 60 pages. I was able to read the first few pages, and I must say, she had a great story idea. I'm looking forward to reading more!

I was also able to take part in the Litchfield County Irish American Club's Irish Festival on September 7 & 8 in New Milford, CT. This was new for me. It was the first time I had sold my books at a two-day event. Even though it was a larger fee, it was entirely worth is, in spite of the fact that day one was shortened by rain. The crowds on both days were great and I managed to make some money and see some folks I hadn't seen for a while, and make some new friends, too.

It also marked the debut of my new 6-foot Deliverers banner that I'll be using for outdoor shows. It looks really nice, and I've had multiple comments on it. I think I missed a slight opportunity by not making it two-sided, but it definitely draws attention, as does the video display and wireless speaker that I've started using to play my video book trailers. The music attracts folks and then they stay to find out about the books and perhaps watch the videos. I'm thinking about maybe making a video incorporating excerpts from my two audio books. What do you think?

Anyhow, last month was great, and this month is off to a fantastic start. I had an event in Bethel, CT this past weekend, and another one is scheduled in my town of New Fairfield, CT on the 26th.

In addition to that, I'm up to over 9,500 words of my new teen/YA novel, Quirk. I'm hoping the first draft will be complete by the middle of next year. You can check out the first and second chapters in my two previous posts. I've got a page set up here.

I guess that's about it for now. I'm truly grateful for all the support everyone has given me, and I look forward to all the great things yet to come on this journey. Until next time, be well.

Peace.