Tag: Fantasy

Posted on by — Leave a comment

Excerpt – Quiet Whisper

Excerpt from Quiet Whisper chapter 19, which will be out around September.  

—

Two guards walked out the gate. Behind them the prisoner followed in chains.

Selissa drew in a breath when her eyes fell on the leader of the Rebellion for the first time. Her first thought was that Lord Taelan in no way looked like someone walking to his death.

A huge steel collar was clamped around his neck, allowing long chains to be fastened to it and letting the guards drag him along like a dog on a leash. His hands were chained as well and he was wearing nothing but a pair of torn trousers. Even underneath the dirt that caked his body, Selissa could see the angry red gashes from a whip covering his naked torso, some of them still bleeding.

Yet even chained and beaten, the Rebellion’s leader walked with an air of confidence, holding his head high as he was paraded in front of the Ver’dohnian masses. With his tall frame he towered over his captors and in the bright sunlight, he looked almost regal.

He’s not a criminal being executed in disgrace, Selissa thought, mesmerized by the quiet strength the man radiated. He’s a martyr dying for his cause.

She was not the only one affected by the prisoner’s lack of resignation. As he had been brought onto the grounds, the crowd had erupted in cheers. Now those cheers were fading, giving way to an uneasy murmur as people threw glances at each other, unnerved by display in front of them.

Captivated by the sight, Selissa had nearly forgotten why she was there before Bane got up from his seat and disappeared into the crowd. Remembering her part, she crept closer to the edge of the platform, watching as the guards led Taelan onto the scaffold.

Two men were waiting for them at the top. One were the executioner, a large halberd resting against his shoulder. Even at a distance, Selissa could see the light flash in the sharpened blade.

They pushed Taelan in front of the chopping block, chains rattling as the guards stepped back to allow the crowd a clear view of the prisoner. The cheering started again, angrier this time, demanding blood to pay for the arrogance of the man still standing tall even though his time was running out.

The man next to the executioner stepped forward, a piece of parchment in his hands. He was wearing a military uniform similar to that of the guardsmen, but with far more adornment than any soldier Selissa had seen. Though not as tall as the rebel in front of him, his presence still demanded respect and Selissa had a feeling she should know who he was, seeing as the crowd immediately quieted when he moved closer to the prisoner.

He folded out the parchment and started speaking in a clear, but toneless voice that somehow carried his words clearly to the audience above him. “Taelan, former thayn of Ashfall, you stand accused of high treason and crimes against the country you once swore to serve. What do you have to say to these charges?”

“All I did, I did in servitude to Ver’dohna.” His reply was strong and unwavering, and as he spoke he raised his chin and turned his head to the audience platform where Selissa was standing.

Sucking in a breath, Selissa took in the sight of the black tattoo on his cheek, wondering how she hadn’t seen it before. Even the layer of dirt on his face couldn’t conceal the swirly black lines against his pale skin as the merciless sunlight hit the exposed Mark and Selissa suddenly realized why they had needed a sorcerer.

His words had caused an uproar among the crowd. All around her, people were shouting and rising from their seat, more eager than ever to see his head roll. Taelan remained unaffected, not even resisting as one of the guards removed the steel collar around his neck and forced him to kneel in front of the chopping block. Selissa fought to keep her breathing calm as the executioner stepped forward, halberd grabbed in both hands. The crowd didn’t share her panic, the cheering nearly exploding in volume as the guard made Taelan rest his head on the block.

That was then the screaming started.

The spectators fell silent in confusion, looking around to find the source, before screams and yells of dying soldiers started sounding from all around them. Selissa stood patiently, waiting for her signal.

It came in the form of a crossbow bolt burrowing itself into the executioner’s heart.

Posted on by — 1 Comment

Guest Post by Vanessa Finaughty – How to Introduce and Write About Nameless Characters

Blog Tour Vanessa Finaughty

She’s back! Vanessa’s blog tour for her Wizard of Ends-series is almost over, but she stops by here today for another guest post before it ends tomorrow. During the tour she has released not just one, but the two first books in the series! That’s 1 book for every… word I have written this month. 

…Let’s not mention that. 

Hastily moving on: Vanessa is going to talk about how to write about nameless characters today. You should read what she has to say and then you should go read the first Wizard of Ends-book(it’s free!). 

I’ll give the stage over to, you guessed it, Vanessa Finaughty. I’ll just go do… whatever I do when I should be writing. Enjoy!

—

In most stories, the majority of the characters are minor characters, and many of them may be so insignificant or appear so briefly that there’s no need to name them. I advise against naming characters who only appear once or who have no relevance to the overall story, as that may serve to confuse readers, especially if your story has lots of characters. Rather, only name those characters who appear frequently, who will appear again in the story or a future book (if it’s a series), or without whom the story cannot progress.

Sometimes these minor characters do drive the plot forward, but they may still appear only once in the story. If your main character is having a conversation with the minor character, it may be necessary to name that minor character to avoid confusing the reader, particularly if it’s a long or medium-length conversation and the characters are the same gender. However, if it’s an action scene, it’s not usually necessary. For example, it’s unnecessary to name the attacker if your MC is attacked by the minor character and the attack itself drives the plot forward, but the attacker isn’t all that important and won’t appear in the story after the attack. How do you write an action scene without naming the attacker?

Here are two examples from Orion’s Harvesters:

Vareck slid the knife from its sheath and spun to face the intruder, thrusting the long blade upwards through his hooded attacker’s ribcage and into his heart. The intruder’s dagger clattered to the ground as he stared wide-eyed at Vareck, then he dropped when Vareck yanked out the knife. He bent and turned the dead man onto his back. Bruises and cuts covered the blonde intruder’s knuckles – a man clearly used to violence.

…and:

Liam came up behind the scrawny man and landed an uppercut in his ribs, barely saving Jack from a slit throat. Instead of doubling over like Liam had expected, the black-clothed man went into a short sideways roll, came to his feet next to the kitchen sink and whirled to face them. Jack and Liam closed in on the man from either side. From the glint in Jack’s eyes, Liam could tell their intent was the same – to give the burglar a good bashing before calling the police, if they even opted for that afterwards; it wouldn’t do to be arrested tonight of all nights, just in case…

If the minor character has attributes that make him or her stand out, you could use those attributes to ‘name’ the character. You can also use the character’s clothes to describe him/her, as I’ve done above. Your characters can also mentally name other characters. For example:

The attacker came at him just as Vareck perceived stealthy movement from behind – the man whose throat he had hit earlier clearly wasn’t as incapacitated as Vareck had hoped. Vareck launched himself to the side. The two attackers advanced without pause, keeping him trapped between them. Vareck lashed out with both knives to keep them from getting too close, backing towards their comrade’s corpse. When his heel touched it, he moved to the side and back, hoping Throat Guy would trip over it.

As you can see, not naming a character usually leads to a greater word count when referring to him/her, but, if this adds to the visuals you give readers, the words are not wasted.

I hope you’ve found this post helpful!

Posted on by — 17 Comments

Guest Post by Vanessa Finaughty – 5 Reasons I Prefer Self-Publishing

Vanessa Finaughty AuthorToday I have a short guest post by fellow fantasy author Vanessa Finaughty. She is doing a blog tour during October to promote her upcoming fantasy adventure series Wizard of Ends.
The two first books will be released during this month and the blog tour will be packed with exciting giveaways from both Vanessa and other fantasy authors(myself included), so it would be well-worth your time to keep an eye out.  

There will be more info on Vanessa and her blog tour at the end of the post. For now, I’ll shut up and let her have the word. 

 

There are as many reasons to self-publish as there are to go the traditional route. Which route you choose depends largely on your personal needs/wants – just don’t think going the traditional route means you won’t have to market your books. Nowadays, authors are the ones who do most of the marketing regardless of the publishing medium.

Below are five of the main reasons I chose to self-publish my books without sending a single query to an agent or traditional publisher:

  1. I have full control over my books, who edits them, when they are published, how they are priced and everything in between.
  1. I can set my own deadlines in a way that allows me to pace myself, so I can easily fit in writing, publishing and marketing along with work, baby time and life’s myriad other responsibilities.
  1. I retain full copyright of all my books and don’t need to ask anyone for permission to do xyz.
  1. I can discount my books or give them away as I see fit.
  1. Let’s not forget the royalties – self-published authors see a much higher percentage of their royalties.

So, now that you all know I’m a control freak when it comes to my books… I’ll end by saying I’m so happy with my publishing choice that, even if a traditional publisher had to approach me with an offer, I would very likely turn it down. I say ‘very likely’ rather than ‘definitely’ because hey, everyone has a price 😉

I hope this post encourages some aspiring authors to take the leap!

–

That’s all from Vanessa in this round, but she will be back here the 30th to talk about how to introduce and write about nameless characters! 

If you wish to follow the rest of the blog tour, check out the tour itinerary for dates, links and giveaways! 

You can also follow Vanessa Finaughty to find out more about her books:
Author website
Author blog
Twitter
Facebook

Blog Tour Vanessa Finaughty