Kayla Andaris, from Stormling (Book One)
"So what exactly are you?"
"I am a woman."
"That. You. Are. So what do you do for fun?"
"I hunt, and I kill on sight."
"Do you kill everything on sight?"
"Only the idiots that ask stupid questions."
Hello friends. I've been a bit erratic with my blog posts this year, but you'll forgive me I hope, as I have been writing heavily for Dark Winter 2 and editing the book that titles this post - Stormling.
Stormling is a good old fashioned epic fantasy adventure that I originally drafted in 2012, which seems a long time ago now. I started writing the book in 2011 following the publication of my martial arts book. Nothing like continuity of genres, is there?
Still, Stormling went through several title changes, successive re-drafts, before arriving at the one that is likely to be viewed by the populace from end of April 2014.
Kinta Pel, one of Stormling's anti-heroes
"Excuse me sir, do you know the way to (gulps)....oh, never mind..."
As with any story worth its salt, it has to have original concepts to make it stand out, and a great hook to make you want to read on. I believe I've achieved this with the book, but as any writer knows, it is the readers who tell us what we have written.
Anadyr, one of the heroes in the book, and the main Stormling of the title.
"Thank the stars he's on our side."
This story ranks as the most difficult one I've attempted. When I hear some authors have written a book in less than a calendar month, I really wonder how they did it. I was going to release Dark Winter 2 straight after the first one, but I wanted to give the residents of Gorswood a rest, and anyway, I felt Romilly and her friends had been through quite enough already!
The story has been a difficult one because it straddles both the fantasy realm and also the real world. With the real world setting, the was originally the main driver for the story, but successive re-writes demanded a re-think, and basically, I was able to swap around the real world setting for the fantasy one, and I believe the story is all the better for it.
Doesn't this just go to prove that even if you know your own story like the back of your hand, you need to step back sometimes...for months even....go and do something else, and then come back to it with fresh eyes, new thoughts, and a different perspective.
Andus Rey, ruler of Caldreah Monus and our story's main bad guy.
Four wings and two swords? That's just being greedy.
I think the fantasy world is something we all love to get lost in, right? Sometimes I love books that really 'speak' to us and hit the emotional chords. But other times, you just want something totally different, and I really enjoyed creating this world. I don't think I had any grey hairs before but I certainly do now :)
Corianna, Lady Elf and landlady of The Faeries Wings Public House
The Angelic Warrior who clipped her own wings to run a pub!
Stormling is populated with angels, warriors, immortals, faeries, sorcerers and sorceresses....all the elements I loved in books and video games when I was growing up (I'm still growing up I think).
All the same, the cover, when it is revealed first on **someone's very fantastic blog**, will show the fantasy elements of what is to come, but have a very strong focus on the real world.
Over the course of a 100,000 word book, some memorable quotes have to come out. I've posted just a few on GoodReads to give you an idea of the book without giving any of the plot line away.
Faeries are just awesome, aren't they?
So. Keep a look out for the book. And if by some happy chance you get yourself a copy, please let me know what you think!
