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October 1, 2014 + advice, Artist, Book, fantasy, Fiction, horror, literature, Novel, Opinion, Romance, rules, thriller, Uncategorized, Urban Fantasy, Writing

When is the right time to publish?

by Jim

The moment a literary agent says ‘yes’ to you!!!

IF you are that lucky! In all seriousness though a good amount of authors peddling their works are self published and that decision comes down to them. That said, one could make the argument that the author decides when to seek out an agent as well. So this piece goes out to everyone.

When to get started on publishing. Honestly, first things first…
-Do you have a completed manuscript?
– Yes, proceed to the next question.
– No, then finish your poem, novel, study, etc, before even thinking about it! You’re putting the cart before the horse!

Has your manuscript been edited?
-Yes, Proceed to the next question.
-No… Get at least three different people to edit the manuscript and then reread the final revision BEFORE doing anything else. Unpolished manuscripts are poison to your chances of an agent looking at you twice and are the absolute worst thing you can do if self-publishing. Even in professional works, mistakes can be found, but too many mistakes can turn readers off to your work.

Are YOU satisfied with it?
-Yes, LIAR!
-No. There shouldn’t be a single person who answered yes. I mean that. A good friend and coworker said to me once that no artist is ever satisfied with their work. If you are… it may be time to take a step back and do some soul searching because to me, that indicates a lack of enthusiasm in said work. It’s like asking someone if they’re ready to say goodbye to their child when that child goes to school on the other side of the globe. NO ONE should be saying yes!

Is the story complete and can you be satisfied with it in it’s current form?
-Yes, you’re ready to begin publishing.
-No, do some soul searching. If you can improve your work, do it. If not, Ask yourself this question again.

I ask these questions, because this is what it all comes down to. Are you ready to part with your work? If not, then you should keep working until you’re ready to allow the proverbial baby to leave the nest. It’s always hard, especially if they’re character that you’ve been working with for a long time.

September 30, 2014 + fantasy, ficiton, Urban Fantasy

Magnifica: Tears of the Fallen

by Jim

SPOILER ALERTS IF YOU HAVEN’T READ THE FIRST ONE!!!

“Ariel, what is it? What has happened? Our world…”

“Oh my God… why… this was not supposed to happen!”

“Ariel, I don’t understand. It’s like an outside influence is affected them.”

“Yes Roselyn, I can feel it, the ebb of time. There was an inter-dimensional shift… something terrible has happened.”

“What should we do, sister?”

“I have a feeling I know what caused this… I think it’s time for us to check in on our friends.”

“Ariel… you know the laws…”

“I know sister, but it’s a risk we have to take. The influence of our kind is what sent their world into chaos in the first place. We have to see…”

Chapter I

“Come on Toby, get up!” A shrill voice called out, breaking the silence.

Toby groaned as his dream world gave way to a light blur. His eyes opened as he spoke, “All right, I’m awake…”

Lia’na shook her head, “Ever since Hawaii you’ve been getting lazy! Come on, we’ve got stuff to do today.”

Toby shook his head as he sat up, “Yes… I know, don’t remind me.”

She frowned, “I already did. We’ve got to go check on your uncle’s house to make sure that the lock was repaired and the cleaning crew did their job, and then you promised that you’d take me somewhere fun.”

“I know…” Toby replied. “I guess I’m just dreading it. I haven’t set foot in that house since before… well you know.”

Lia’na nodded, “Yeah… look if it’s that big of a deal, I can just go and look for you.”

She crawled onto the mattress until her face was right in front of Toby’s, “I’m sorry. I guess I’m just anxious. Classes start on Monday and I know we won’t be able to go out much when things pick up.”

Toby turned to the side and put his feet on the floor, “Don’t worry about it. I know we need to get this done at some point. It might as well be now.”

Toby looked Lia’na over as he stood up. She was once again sleeping in his Boston Red Sox jersey instead of the pajamas that he’d bought for her. The white shirt complimented the tan on her skin from the weeks that they’d spent in Hawaii. Her hair was a mess and her braids were coming out, but she didn’t seem to care.

Toby liked this look on Lia’na much more than when she got all dressed up. To him, this was a sign that she was comfortable and relaxed around him. Why she preferred his jersey to the cotton pajamas was anyone’s guess, but the one time she wore the pajamas he got her, she tossed and turned all night.

Lia’na smiled as Toby pulled himself up, “All right! Shower time.”

She grabbed his hand and led him into the bathroom. Toby followed close behind and shut the door. He quickly turned the dial that activated the fan in the bathroom. It quickly came on with a whoosh as he in turned back to the shower.

Lia’na reached down to the bottom of the uniform and pulled the end up over her head. All she was wearing underneath was a pair of white bikini bottoms. Toby watched her undress as she got ready for the shower. It was something he’d seen several times before, but he never tired of it. Lia’na noticed him staring and slowed down a little with a coy smile on her face.

The moment Toby realized what she was doing he stopped watching her and quickly stripped off his own t-shirt and boxers. Once they were both ready, Lia’na stepped into the porcelain tub and bent down to turn the water on. It took her a moment to find a comfortable temperature, but once she had, she pulled the level and activated the shower head.

Toby got in behind her as the water poured down her body. She stood up straight, closed her eyes, and released a deep sigh as the heat caressed her skin. The water made her shimmer as Toby pulled her body close and let the water fall down around them.

Lia’na nuzzled her head into Toby’s chest as he squeezed her and wrapped her arms around him. She was breathing deeply, allowing the water to sooth her nerves. Her back arched as Toby ran his hand over her spine and her skin broke out in goose bumps.

A familiar feeling came over Toby. His body began to glow as little wisps of light appeared around them in the shower. Lia’na looked at them with worry, “Spirit embers… Toby, this is the third time in two weeks.”

Toby nodded as he looked at his skin, “I know. I don’t understand it either. The radioactive properties of the crystal are what gave me these powers in the first place. By now, the residual energy should have worn off. Shouldn’t my powers have vanished by now?”

Lia’na shrugged, “I don’t know, ta arshana. I would have at least expected them to weaken somewhat, but they haven’t and that worries me. We need to figure out why your powers are still with you, and why they seem to have gained strength.”

“How do we figure that out?” Toby asked.

“I don’t know.” Lia’na admitted. “Masarabi might have been able to tell us, but we’re not allowed to go back there. I checked every historical piece I could find on the Lux Mundi online, but they didn’t have anything either. Maybe when we get back to campus the library will have something. Arias has a collection of old books that might have something.”

“All right.” Toby replied. “Then we’ll check the library when we get back. For now though, can we just not worry about it? It’s been bothering you since we got back from Hawaii and I would just like to have a day or two where we don’t worry about things.”

Lia’na nodded as the embers slowly vanished and she gave him a tight squeeze, “Deal.”

Neither one of them wanted to let the moment end, but they had a long day ahead of them and had to get started. Toby would have been okay with staying in the room and relaxing, but he knew that Lia’na was still getting used to her new home closer to the city, so he decided to do things her way.

Toby grabbed a small green bottle of shampoo off of the wall and turned back to Lia’na, “Okay, turn around.”

Lia’na smiled as she did as she was told and faced the shower head, “I’ll never get tired of you doing this.”

Toby shrugged as he emptied some of the contents on to his hands, “I don’t get why you enjoy it so much.”

She closed her eyes as he ran his hands through her hair and shrugged, “I’m not really sure why I like it either. When you wash my hair, it relaxes me. It feels like you’re willing take care of me when I need or want it.”

Toby ran his hands through her long hair, careful to make sure that it was all getting some soap. His fingers spread and ran through it like a pair of combs. He quickly finished up and lathered the rest of her body.

Lia’na slowly rinsed herself off by turning around a few times under the water. Finally she stepped out from under the shower and wiped the water from her eyes. She smiled as her eyes met Toby’s, “Your turn.”

Toby switched places with Lia’na and got under the water. He closed his eyes as the drying sweat rinsed off of his skin. As he washed, Toby felt fingers going through his hair.

Lia’na had apparently decided to return the favor and quickly washed Toby’s hair. She worked her fingers through his short hair with the soap. Toby knew she had a much easier job than he did because he didn’t have anywhere near as much hair. Yeah, no fair; this shouldn’t count as returning the favor.

They stayed in the shower for a few more minutes before Toby twisted the handle to turn the water off. Once the last drops had fallen from the shower head, he reached out from behind the curtain to the rack above the toilet and grabbed two towels. He handed the first one to Lia’na and wiped himself down with the second one.

Toby quickly brushed his teeth and hair and left Lia’na to tend to her own hair. He headed over to his dresser and grabbed a clean black shirt out of the drawer with a decent pair of khaki shorts. Unlike when he was on campus, his underwear drawer was full of clean shorts, so finding a decent pair was easy.

Toby dressed quickly as Lia’na worked on her hair in the bathroom. When he was done, Toby quickly went through the closet he’d given to Lia’na for her clothes. He found a nice pair of flats and a black dress that he had bought for her, but she had yet to wear. He went back to his own drawer with her clothes in hand and grabbed a black collared shirt and a pair of longer pants from his drawer.

Now that Toby had everything that he wanted, he snuck out of the bedroom, through the living room, and down to his bike in the garage. He moved quietly, hoping Lia’na wouldn’t notice that he was missing.

A familiar purr came from the garage as he opened the door. Toby shook his head, “Shh…”

The bike quieted down as Toby slid the clothes into the leather side bags on the motorcycle. He quickly threaded the straps back together, concealing the bags’ contents as he looked at the bike’s headlight, “Don’t say anything okay? I’m taking Lia’na somewhere special.”

The bike made a low revving sound and immediately cut out. Toby smiled, “Thanks buddy. I’ll be right back.”

Toby quickly made his way back upstairs to the condo. He opened the door, walked back into the bedroom, and sat down on his mattress. Thankfully, Lia’na was still in the bathroom. He was about lay down when his phone went off. The loud music made him jump as he turned to his nightstand. The display was lit up and a horrible picture of Gishan from when he was drunk appeared.

Oh God… what does he want? Toby thought as he picked up the phone, “Hey buddy, what’s up?”

“Nothing,” Gishan replied, “just checking in. How you guys doing?”

“We’re fine.” Toby replied. “Lia’na’s pretty much all healed up. The Ulium is gone and the emotional damage seems to be going away as well. She seems to be getting more used to living here.”

“That’s good… really good.” Gishan replied.

Toby rolled his eyes, “Seriously dude, this is the fourth time you’ve called in a few days, what’s going on?”

“Ah I don’t know.” Gishan’s voice replied. “I guess I’m just bored. Giselle is out of town for another few weeks and God only knows where she is.”

Toby nodded, “Comes with the job, you know?”

“Yeah I do…” Gishan said. “Doesn’t make it any easier though.”

“I didn’t think it would.” Toby admitted as Lia’na came out of the bathroom. “Don’t worry about it though. We’ll all be on campus in another day or so.”

Gishan sighed, “Yeah I know. It just won’t be the same having to share my place with a new roommate.”

Toby shrugged, “Matteus is a good guy. You’ll do fine.”

“Did you get all of your crap out of the room?” Gishan asked.
“Yeah.” Toby replied. “We rented a van a few days ago and got both mine and Lia’na’s stuff before turning in our keys to the office.”

“Don’t seem right dude…” Gishan said softly.

“I know Gishan.” Toby said in a comforting tone. “Look, if it gets that bad, you can always come here and shack up in the spare bedroom. You’ve got a key, you know?”

Gishan’s voice perked up a little. “Yeah I do. All right thanks Toby.”

“Don’t mention it.” Toby replied. “I’ll see you on Monday.”

“Looking forward to it, see ya man.” Gishan said as he hung up the phone.

Lia’na stepped out of the bathroom and looked at Toby as he put the phone down, “Gishan again?”

Toby nodded, “It’s a big adjustment for him. This will be the first time we’re not living together in a while. I guess he doesn’t like having to let go.”

Lia’na rolled his eyes, “He doesn’t have to, you know? We have the extra room! He can always move in here! Now that you’ve bound me to you, I don’t really need that room and I never wanted to come between you two.”

Toby shrugged, “I know that, I offered it to him… but he’s stubborn. I’m sure after a few weeks with Matteus, he’ll come around.”

Lia’na shook her head, “I hope so. I don’t think Giselle likes the idea of hanging out on a college campus.”

Toby smiled as he looked at her, “Come on; let’s go out for some breakfast.”

Lia’na’s eyes lit up, “Oh, the Tumble Inn?”

Toby nodded, “Why not?”

“All right!” Lia’na cheered. “Give me a minute to get dressed.”

Lia’na quickly threw on a pair of black bikini briefs, a matching bra, jean shorts, and a green lace top with spaghetti straps. It was still warm out, so she thought that this would be sufficient. She quickly looked at herself in the mirror and nodded in approval.

Once Lia’na was convinced she looked presentable, she turned to Toby, “Okay I’m ready! Let’s go!”

The couple left Toby’s condo and headed down to the garage. The moment the door opened, Lia’na was startled by the loud roar of a motorcycle engine. Toby’s bike was powered up and ready to go.

Lia’na shook her head as she looked at it, “I still don’t understand how she still has powers. That’s a little worrisome.”

Toby frowned with a hurt look on his face, “I like it. The bike is much more fun with a personality, though it can be a little too pushy at times!”

The bike stopped roaring and let out a low purr. Lia’na gave the bike a sympathetic look, “Aw, Toby, you hurt her feelings!”

“And how do you know it’s a woman?” Toby demanded.

Lia’na ran her fingers across the seat as the bike’s engine purred appreciatively, “Women just understand each other.”

Toby’s eyes rolled as he sat on the bike, “Oh whatever, let’s go!”

September 29, 2014 + advice, Artist, Book, Characters, Cover, fantasy, ficiton, Fiction, Inspiration, literature, Novel, Opinion, rules, Writing

Author’s Advice (Part 1)

by Jim

The best advice I can give to any new authors out there is probably going to surprise everyone:

Completely disregard what your potential audience may want.

Yup, you read that right. I’m giving you permission to be completely selfish with your writing, because it’s just that; YOUR WRITING! The characters you create are yours, the world you set them in are yours, you are God in that world and no one can tell you what to do with it… (Unless they bought the rights and are publishing it for you… then you may have to change a few things, but for the most part, it’s still yours.)

When you write, don’t write for what you think people would like or base what you do with a character on whether or not it’s PC or what is considered ‘right.’ There are no rights and wrongs in writing. You are free to do what you want. This advice came to me when I was watching some of the interviews and documentaries following Lord of the Rings. I don’t remember the man’s name, there was an interview with a man who worked with J.R.R. Tolkien on Lord of the Rings. He mentioned how Tolkien was often dismayed over not really being able to find any stories he liked reading. Finally he decided that if he wanted a good book out there to read, he’d have to write it himself.

I took that comment to heart when I set to write my very first full length novel. A lot of my short stories were well received, but too many of them fell flat. Upon looking back at them, I realized that I had spent too much time trying to anticipate what people would like. I was being a fool. So I turned around and started writing things that I like, things that I would want to see happen in a story and characters that I could attach myself to.

Before I knew it, I had my novel written. I gave it to my toughest critic (my wife) and she loved it. (My wife doesn’t sugar coat things, she tells you if she doesn’t like what you’ve done. I’ve had a few stories axed due to her review). Within a few months it was polished, I had a cover ready, and my work was being submitted… a few weeks later I scratched one of my life-long goals off of my list:

September 27, 2014 + advice, Artist, Book, Characters, Cover, ficiton, Fiction, Graphic design, Inspiration, literature, Novel, Opinion, rules, Writing

To illustrate or not to illustrate?

by Jim

It’s a question that has plagued many a fiction writer. Should you add illustrations to your novel? Should you include images of your characters on the cover of your book or should you restrict all imagery to symbols and leave the rest to the reader?

To be honest, I’ve heard credible arguments on both sides of the isle and they both have good points. On one hand, readers entering the world you’ve created like to use their imaginations. They like to be able to enter the world and construct things based on how you’ve described them. Showing them the characters robs them of that chance and now they have to picture your character in a world their forming around it.
On the other hand however, if you are trying to make sure that a very specific image of a character or place is conveyed, and done properly, then you an image would definitely be helpful. Admittedly though when I try to do read a book with characters on the cover, it’s a lot harder than placing a face to a character myself so I understand the argument. That said, is dropping an image of a character into your writing really all that damaging?

It really depends. I would definitely say putting a full image of a character on the cover so the reader knows exactly who they’re reading about and what the person looks like is a very bad move. However, I’ve seen covers where a character’s back is turned so you can make out a silhouette or some of the features from behind, but not the face. In most cases, I’d say that as long as the face remains hidden, then putting a character on the cover is permissible. I’ve also found that audience imagery is also very forgiving of scenery on the cover as long as the cover doesn’t completely give away where that scene is.

Now what about internal illustrations? Well if you take a look back, most older novels and poetry collections have some form of imagery -usually wood cuttings- hidden every couple of chapters.

If you take a look even further back in time to around the the medieval times… books like the legendary Book of Hours and many Bibles looked more like picture books with words in small boxes.

(Heh, I’ve been trying to hunt one of those down for years!)
So illustrating novels, stories, religious works, and works of fiction internally is certainly nothing new or uncommon. In my opinion, once the reader has already developed an idea of what a place or person looks like, inserting an image as a point of reference is far less damaging and can actually be helpful. Usually at that point the reader has already come up with a rough idea of what a character looks like, so an image here can help the users connect the dots to exactly what the character looks like.

In the end, it’s pretty much subjective. Personally, I would avoid placing a character’s image on the cover of a book and opt for some scenery or symbol instead. I would save the character image and insert it a few chapters in, but like I said, it’s a subjective topic and I can understand both sides of the debate so if you’ve got something that works for you, go with it.

Anyway, hopefully I’ve given everyone something to think about. Leave a comment below and let me know what you think.

Catch you on the flip side!
-Jim

September 27, 2014 + Characters, fantasy, Fiction, Inspiration, literature, Movie, Novel, Opinion, rules, Urban Fantasy, video games, Writing

Elves

by Jim

As you can imagine by my written work so far… I love elves. They’re are some of my favorite mythological characters… but over the years, there have been different incarnations of them. So which one is the right one? Well technically speaking, there is no right or wrong in Fantasy… and I can say that with a straight face after watching Jeremy Irons in Dungeons and Dragons!

In all seriousness though, everyone has their own interpretation and any one of them can be labelled as ‘correct.’ So where did all of these different variations come from?

In early works, specifically the old norse legends, elves (or ælf, ylf, alp, alpi, elpi, alfr depending on time period and region) are known for having dark skin in many cases, piercing eyes, and are almost flawlessly elegant. They are known for being evasive and deceptive in these stories. There is no reference to whether or not they have pointed ears and given that the characters have a hard time identifying them, it seems likely their their ears are either concealed or similar to humans. They do share many traits with faeries, brownies and pixies, which would lead one to believe that they were all one mythical form at one point.

Hrolf Kraki’s Saga description of elves:
“He sat up and hauled back the fell. There lay a woman in a sheening sark. Never had he seen any this beautiful. The straw hardly cracked as she rose to her knees and smiled at him. Full breasts and hips thrust against her garment, shone through it; their sweetness overwhelmed all winter chill and stench, he was suddenly drown in summer. Raven’s-wing locks flowed past a face pale and strange, too cleanly carven to be wholly human. Her eyes were the unblinking gold of a hawk’s.”

Despite no reference to pointed ears, Skyrim’s version of the elf seems to fit the description:

Now I’ll admit that this is not how I see elves, and there are other perfectly good examples. Take a Mid Summer Night’s Dream…

From Shakespearean times, the word elf saw use in English as a term loosely brelated to the French fairy. It also became associated with diminutive supernatural beings like Puck, Robin Goodfellow, brownes, and even pixies were associated with them. Which may have given author J.K. Rowling the inspiration for her version of elves:

It logically makes sense… but this came from Shakespearean times and, like the Roman’s borrowing from the Greeks, things get distorted. So since I don’t subscribe to the more intelligent and useful version of Jar Jar Binks idea… let’s move on.

Moving forward into modern times, dealing with Tolkien and his Middle Earth. Here we have several incarnations of elves… including, oddly enough, at least one without pointed ears. In his stories, the elves are created as a separate race by the Gods. Near as I can tell, they were meant to be a sort of angel that was not meant to remain forever.

Tolkien, thankfully, tried to go back in some ways to the original designs… though I think he may have pushed the feminine button a little too hard… and apparently I’m not the only one who thinks so.

Following Tolkien’s popular depiction of elves… we now have a plethora of different renditions to choose from, some of them good… others are just downright cartoony! Everything from the early incarnations in Dungeons and Dragons, to later appearances in Warcraft, Dragon Age, etc.

So I realize that I still haven’t answered my own question; which version do I believe is accurate. Well, in my book, Magnifica, elves are much like humans. They are warm blooded creatures that share many of the same traits with our species. They are capable of producing offspring with human partners, so their internal biology isn’t too much different. However, the few elves that are not infected with the Ulium disease, outlive humans by almost 80 years. They are light eaters and have a sixth sense that allows them to detect magic and communicate with nature on a much more personal level than humans. They are about the same height as humans and slightly stronger on average.

So what do they look like? Well if you read my post on creating rules for your story? One of my rules was that everything had to be as realistic as possible. In other words, it wouldn’t be too much of a stretch to buy that some of these creatures could exist. I’m personally not at all fond of the anime style, while at the same time, the Lord of the Rings version has ears so small that a strategically placed hairdo can cover them… which I suppose you could argue is why early versions don’t mention there ears.

That said, in my personal opinion, the best version comes from a Skyrim mod I often use in my games. This is what I picture when someone mentions an elf:

The ears aren’t too long but stick out just enough to be pronounced, they’re as tall as any human, their skin is slightly tanned while at the same time nearly flawless, so it covers all the bases mentioned above. Again, this is all opinion-based so feel free to disagree with me. I won’t take offense!

You may notice that I didn’t mention Christmas elves… honestly, I just don’t think they fit in here. Given that St. Nicolas’ legend stems from Asia minor, which is a good distance away from the Nordic areas, I’d be more apt to believe that Christmas elves are more closely related to a version of dwarves given that they’re portrayed as being very short, and manual laborers. Maybe I’m thinking too much into this? Well either way, that’s my two cents.

See you on the flip side!
-Jim

September 26, 2014 + advice, Fiction, Inspiration, literature, rules, Uncategorized, Writing

Sequels

by Jim

Lately a lot of remakes have found their way onto the market. For the most part none of them have been any good. Think about it…

Most of the Disney sequels… Ghost Rider 2, Everything after Jaws, the supposed new Ghost Busters move (yup, I’m projecting), Men in Black 2, Men in Black 3, The Exorcist 2: The Heretic, Both Matrix Sequels, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest, The Ring 2, Lost Boys 2, Love Never Dies (Phantom of the Opera Sequel… DON’T WATCH IT!!) …What do you mean they made sequels of the Butterfly effect!?

As you can see, we have a lot of really bad examples to choose from. So why are they so bad, how do they keep getting green lighted? Well, let’s start at the beginning.

As far as I’m concerned, there are three types of sequels; the direct sequel, the indirect sequel, and the forced sequel. Two of them stand a decent chance at being good… one has almost none. Care to guess which? Let’s go through them:

The Direct Sequel
Some stories are not stand alone. 1.5 to 3 hours (movies) and 80k-100k words (novel) aren’t always going to be enough to tell a complete story. It’s unrealistic to throw everything into one massive book or extremely long movie… especially given peoples’ average attention span these days. Writing a second book or movie is a logic step in the progression of the story. Now that’s not to say that sequels can’t fall flat on their face, The Matrix was a prime example of this. However, when it is done right, the story can flow almost seamlessly. Good examples of this are The Empire Strikes Back and The Lord of the Rings.

The Indirect Sequel
So when I finished my first book (Divinity) and submitted it to a literary agent, the first question out of their mouths was ‘Do you plan on writing any sequels?’ Stupid me, I answered no! My reasoning was that I was done with the story. All the loose ends were tied up and my lead characters had struggled to the point where they deserved their happy ending. So why ruin that?
Well needless to say, I never heard from that agent again… So then I got to thinking, how could I do a sequel without actually disturbing the Happily Ever After ending that I had set up for my characters. The answer came to me pretty quickly; An entirely new story, featuring new characters, but set in the same world, around the same time as the first story. This could set the stage to have some characters from the first story make appearances! Huzzah! I’d discovered a work around.
This is the way sequels to complete stories should be done. It makes sense, you have a world people enjoy reading about and, no doubt there are several aspects of this world that still need to be explored. New places or takes on certain events. Have your audience see them through fresh eyes and let the characters that have already been through enough, have their happy ending. Dragon Age did this beautifully with ‘The Grey Warden’ and then the ‘Hero of Kirkwall.’

The Forced Sequel
Now we reach the bottom of the barrel. This is where you have a complete story, a good story, a story that needs no extras. Stories like Jurassic Park, The Phantom of the Opera, Most of the Disney movies that got sequels, and The Never Ending Story.
So how do such bad movies get green lighted? The answer maybe more infuriating and simpler than most people think. While sometimes it’s a legitimate attempt to expand a great story and look at characters in a new light… more often (like 99.99% of the time) its…

Yup… that’s right… It’s a money grab, NOTHING more. It’s an attempt to cash in on an otherwise successful title in the desperate attempt to turn said title into a franchise and it very rarely works. See publishers and movie studios don’t want stand alone stories anymore. They want something that they can continuously make money off of. So if they see a title do extremely well, a sequel is almost inevitable. Whether the story needs one or not.
Unfortunately their little ploy works! The reason for this is that most of us know right off that the sequel is most likely going to be bad. We’re not stupid, for the most part. We’re just hoping against all hope that the writers and producers weren’t JUST seeing dollar signs and are actually going to give us something great. By the time we realize that it’s just another mindless money grab that has ruined our image of the first movie, it’s already too late. The studio/publishing exec’s have cashed the billion dollar cheques that we gave them to satiate our curiosity. Thus no statement has been made and they now have the money to trash yet another great movie.

Hope this helps and makes people think twice about knowingly subjecting themselves to bad stories.

Catch you on the flip side!
-Jim

September 26, 2014 + fantasy, ficiton, Fiction, literature, Uncategorized, Writing

Thought of the Week: Now That I’m Published…

by Jim

Hi all, wanted to give you the chance to take a look at another newcomer to the published author scene. Please take a few minutes from reading through Magnifica 😉 to check this out!

Satis Writes

It’s been quite a while since I’ve had much to say here, and I’m sorry for that. I’ve been through one of the worst summers in recent memory in terms of battling my depression and possible bipolar diagnosis, and it’s been a daily struggle to even get out of bed. Work has been utterly exhausting, and in the little spare time I’ve had, I’ve tried desperately to dedicate myself to my book.

Having said that, I am still here, and I’m hoping to be around a little more than I have been lately. There was a time when I posted several times a week, and while I can’t quite commit to that level of activity yet, I would like to get back into the swing of things. I remember the wonderful feeling of knowing someone else has read your words, whether they be of hope or despair, and I of course…

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September 25, 2014 + Book, Fiction, John Carpenter, literature, Movie, Novel, Opinion, Romance, True Story, Worst

Least Favorite story ever…

by Jim

There is really no way around it. I kind of knew that this was unavoidable. There are a couple of stories that really irk me, but this one, in movie form takes the cake. This story, to me, was so bad that it actually inspired me to start a movie blog a few years ago… the blog didn’t do so well so I abandoned it. So I’ll basically take what I wrote there and try to add a little as I go. Bear with me, I can already feel my blood boiling.

The Vow (2012)

Now I know what everyone is thinking;
“Of course he’s going to bring up a girl’s movie. He’s a guy who’s into fantasy and action.”
No! I’m okay with romantic movies. I still enjoy 50 First Dates and Valentine’s Day was a cute movie in it’s own right. I actually bought my wife a copy of Just Like Heaven… and City of Angels is a guilty pleasure. I give stories a fair chance and don’t judge just because it’s from a specific genre. This one however, drove me crazy to the point where I was pretty much yelling by the end of it. Thank God I didn’t pay money to go see it or I might have had a coronary!

My wife turned it on one day because she wanted to see it. Being a good loving husband, I decided to give it a chance. Within minutes, I was regretting that decision.

So by now you’re probably asking yourself why does he find this movie offensive to the senses? It’s a cute love story, what’s your issue? Well… let’s take a look…

SPOILERS AHEAD!

So the movie starts off with this young couple enjoying a night out on the town. They are getting ready to drive home when their car get’s hit. The husband, played by present heart-throb Channing Tatum… (Soon to be Gambit in X-Men Apolcalypse… kay…), is unharmed while his wife, Rachel McAdams, suffers a traumatic brain injury and loses her memory.

She is brought into the hospital where it’s revealed that she’s lost a large chunk of her memory, but not all of it and actually mistakes her husband for a doctor. It’s not long before her family gets wind of what’s going on and comes to her aid. At this point, you find out that her and her family have a troubled history, which is why she moved into the city. The worst part about this set up is that the last thing she remembers is being engaged to another man.

This results in the ex showing up again… most likely contacted by her parents, and the girl throwing herself at her ex behind her husband’s back. All the while, she is treating her husband horribly while he tries to help her recover.

I’m going to stop there for a moment. This is a major problem for me. Let me explain, despite her losing her memory and being indifferent to the guy she learns she’s married to, her husband does everything (and I mean everything) to help her heal and make her comfortable. He also shows some class and doesn’t tell her why she left her family, which is revealed later that her father, played by Sam Neil, had an affair with one of her friends, and her mother is living in a delusional world where her family is more important than the individual feelings of herself, or her children. The mother basically seems to be in a hypnotic state of denial!

So, back on track, Rachel’s character treats her husband like crap, and eventually leaves him to go back and be with her family. Yes, it’s Tatum who finalizes the divorce, but it’s her pushing away and her family’s constant pressure that prompts him to make that decision. So now, pretty much the last few years of his now-ex wife’s life is being undone. Tragic, I’ll admit. I’d probably have gone insane at this point if I were in Tatum’s shoes.

So eventually she discovers that she’s been manipulated by her family and their misdeeds are brought out into the light… Her father’s actions and her own desire for freedom are why she left home in the first place and moved to the city. So now that we have that realization, does she go back to her husband apologetically with tears in her eyes and beg his forgiveness? Nope. That’s what a person with a heart does. That’s what someone with feelings and emotions does… does she even tell her family off? Nope…

So what does she do then?

SHE ALLOWS THE DIVORCE TO GO THROUGH AND LET’S HER FAMILY CONTINUE TO MANIPULATE HER!! She gives up her art and goes back to school because… that’s what daddy told her to do, and pretty much goes back to the way things were, completely forgetting that her father had sex with one of her friends… wonderful. Channing man, I’m starting to think you were better off without this… woman. She’s officially hit the rewind button on life and years of progress have been LOST!

So eventually events, probably similar to ones that happened before she lost her memory, happen again and she realizes, once again, that school isn’t for her, and she moves back to the city, once again, to continue working on her art. She tells her father that she’s not leaving because of him, it’s just something she has to do… and God bless your heart if you believe a word of that.

So she moves back to the city, ‘coincidentally enough’ not too far from where her now-ex-husband lives, but doesn’t go to see him. Which, for once, is the right thing to do! Seriously, you wring a human being through the blender, stomp on his heart, and spit on the remaining pieces, at least have the decency to let the guy live his life! So maybe she has a redeeming quality…

Until…

Six months go by and she continues to work on her ‘art.’ One night outside a shop the couple used to frequent, Channing runs into his ex-wife who tells him she’s moved back to the city. She tells him everything that’s happened… and like a total sucker, he takes her back! Are you freaken serious!? Her family doesn’t like you, she all but cheated on you, she treated you like crap and left you high and dry and your taking her back? Seriously any person, any REAL person, would have scoffed and walked away.

Okay, if it’s not painfully obvious to why by now why I really hate this story, then let me lay it out for you:
1. Ladies and Gents, you can’t abuse your loved one, cheat on them, treat them like crap and expect that they’ll just take you back when all is said and done. I don’t care what the excuse is. If the person has any self respect at all, they’ll laugh at you for even trying.

2. Decisions people, you make them, you have to live with them! There is a saying “You can’t go Home again.” It’s truth.

3. If someone manipulates you, it’s probably not the best move in the world to put your trust in those people!

There is no character development here at all. What we see is a character revert to a previous time and then regrow to where they were when the movie started. That’s not development. Not a single person apologizes for the wrong they’ve done. I get not holding something over someone’s head for the rest of their lives. Forgive and move on, but when you’ve NEVER apologized for it in the first place, and then make no effort to come clean with the skeletons when someone has put their trust in you… that’s reprehensible! The father doesn’t apologize for being an adulterer, the friend doesn’t apologize for being a slut, the mother doesn’t apologize for being dillusional and allowing her father to manipulate her, knowing full well what’s going on. The ex doesn’t apologize for being a douche, and the wife doesn’t apologize for being a cheating abusive witch, to the one somewhat respectable human being in this movie who actually deserved one!

God… the entire time I was watching this movie, I kept thinking back to an episode I saw (Of Law and Order I think), where a young woman walks in on her family who has been brutally murdered. After an intense investigation, it turns out that her family manipulated her out of her life and marriage after she suffered amnesia in almost identical fashion to this movie. The difference: The daughter got her memory back a few years later, saw that her husband had married another woman, realized what her family had done to her AND MURDERED THEM! This would have been a better and probably more realistic outcome, and one I was waiting for the entire time! But it never freaken happens!

This fantasy of a movie gives off the impression that there is no consequences for your actions and you can treat people like shit and they will still come running back to you. The entire time it’s trying to paint Rachel’s character as blameless… this is something a neo-feminist would write!

Yes I understand that she had amnesia, she was confused and alone, etc. But see that’s the thing, she knew she was still married when she threw herself at her ex, she knew her husband was struggling to care for her. Did she care? Hell no!

The worst part? This movie was based on a true story. I looked it up, I did the research, yes the woman in that stories put her through hell, but at least there it was explained that it was from her head injury and not because she was stressed out by what was going on around them. As it turns out, they didn’t like this re-telling of their story because it left out a major key element in what kept them together; faith.

That’s right, all reference to religion was completely abandoned. Want another shocking fact? All of the family turmoil that went on in the book and the movie dealing with her father’s unscrupulous behavior and interference in her life and marriage… was pure fiction! That’s right, none of it really happened! They had the support of their families and were able to hold together through everything.

The lead woman in fictitious story is a total witch for no explained reason and there is nothing redeemable about her character. It would appear she showed her true colors of what caliber of person she was when she lost her memory.

Seriously, I’ve seen some bad romance stories in my time but this… this is mind numbingly bad, it’s reprehensible and it’s intolerable. It’s not what would really happen unless the guy was a pathetic fool, and it really pissed me off! It’s not charming, it’s not romantic, I hope it burns in hell as no doubt her fictitious adulterous father will.

I’m going to stop now before I actually give myself a coronary. Feel free to disagree… but to me, this story will be hard to top!

September 25, 2014 + Book, Characters, Dean Koontz, Fiction, horror, literature, thriller, Writing

Favorite Story?

by Jim

What you mean besides the ones I write? Just kidding!

That’s… a tough call to be honest. I’m very picky about the things I read and often restrict myself to Fantasy/Folklore and Sci-Fi. My collection includes things like the Elder Edda, Hrolf Kraki’s Saga, The Frithiof Saga, and a lot of Tolkien.

However if I had to choose a favorite out of everything I’ve ever read, I’d have to dive back pretty far. It was an Autumn night in 1999 when I was suffering through my High School fall reading list to find a book that I would enjoy. To my surprise, I stumbled upon a Dean Koontz Novel posted by one of my professors. Not really a fan, but happy to see something other than the classic fiction pieces and normal drab that most people wouldn’t pick up outside of a classroom, I bought the book.

Not a day goes by where I am not thankful that I did….

This is an old one 1995 and falls out of the normal genre I usually stick to. Thrillers and Horror stories while great, aren’t usually my cup of tea, but something about this one got me hooked.

It’s not one book, but a collection of stories from Koontz. Most of them were the average fair from Koontz. They were good stories, as you’d expect from such a great author, but one specifically grabbed me.

The actual story, Strange Highways, which the book was named for:

Synopsis (Wikipedia):

“Strange Highways” (novel): a failed author returns to his hometown after many years to attend his father’s funeral, only to find himself suddenly and inexplicably thrust back through time to relive a traumatic event from his past, and possibly to find redemption. In the introduction, Koontz lists the Centralia, Pennsylvania mine fire as an inspiration for this story.

It’s a story of a man given a second chance and the opportunity to change his fate. The only problem is that he has to face down someone… or something that is pure evil.

I can’t give too much away because I really think that everyone should give it a read. It’s not a long story, so it won’t take a long time to get through. The characters are great, the twist as to who the bad guy is, is somewhat expected, but Koontz still keeps you on the edge of your seat while the author faces it down.

The female lead character, I’ll admit, is pretty much your typical damsel in distress, but she’s mysterious enough to be likable by herself. All and all it’s a great story, the main character starts off as somewhat drab and dismal, but you grow to appreciate his life and sympathize with him. By the end, if you aren’t warmed by what happened to him, you have a heart of stone. It really is a classic style adventure that leaves you satisfied at the end. For this short story alone, the book is worth the $2 price tag on amazon. I highly recommend picking it up. It really is amazing what can be packed into a short story.

If you follow my advice or have already read it, I’d be interested to hear opinions, whether you agree with me or not!

Catch you on the flip side!
– Jim

September 25, 2014 + Cover, ficiton, Fiction, Inspiration, literature, rules, Uncategorized, Writing

Character Complexes

by Jim

Developing a great character can add to… and in some cases save a story. However in almost every movie or book, certain characters always fall into different archetypal roles. How many of us have gone to the movies, seen one particular character and been like ‘Oh yeah, that guy’s not surviving this movie!’
Well, there’s a reason for that and it is because that character fits into one of many molds that movie goer’s and readers are all too familiar with. I’ve developed my own names for each of them over time with some of the more famous and/or notorious examples. Let’s explore them one at a time, shall we?

The Obi Wann Kenobi complex
Star Wars certainly didn’t invent this one, but it’s definitely the most well-known example. This complex belongs to a character, usually of advanced age who is the moral “right” in the story. S/he usually takes on the mentor role and provides words of wisdom to our main hero. This person can be incredibly powerful or incredibly feeble, it usually works either way. It also doesn’t matter if this mentor uses kind nurturing or tough love.
The main problem with this character is that he or she is actually a hindrance to the main hero. This is because the hero cannot truly grow and become strong and independent as long as he is still under the mentor’s wing. As long as the mentor is still around to protect the hero, the villain is usually kept at bay and the hero remains unchallenged. Thus this character will almost always be the sacrificial… (for lack of a better term) lamb to help the hero development.
Other examples include:
Dumbledore (Harry Potter)
Mufasa (Lion King)
Qui Gon Jinn (… Episode 1)
Captain Pike (Star Trek/Darkness)
Whistler (Blade)
Bambi’s Mother (Bambi)
Yoda (ROTJ)
Juan Sanchez Villa-Lobos Ramirez (Highlander)
One could argue that Gandalf from LOTRs also had this complex as Frodo thinks he’s dead, but he actually survives, so I kept him off the list.

The Conflicted Villain Complex
I’m not going to lie, I love this one. Arguably the best characters I’ve ever read/wrote about or seen in a movie, suffer from this. A character who falls into this category doesn’t always start off as evil. Often they are exposed to horrors during their lives that twist them into what they have become. Others take up a cause or try to alter their destiny and go to extremes to make what they desire most happen. Ironically, in most cases, the exact opposite of what they wanted happens and they are left broken and having to face the decisions that they made.
In most cases they are teetering on the edge of insanity and/or are dealing with an internal conflict where their previous good selves are still fighting to come back. Often times, they can come back and are successfully saved. Many become the true heroes of the story by realizing their error at the last possible moment and come forward to save the day, often sacrificing themselves in the process.

Unlike the one-dimensional villains that we are all used to, it’s often hard to tell where characters who suffer from this stand. It is also much harder for people to not relate to these characters and sympathize with them, often more so than the hero of the story. Characters like Maleficent (Sleeping Beauty) or Scar (Lion King) while well done, really don’t have a whole lot to them.

Examples:
Darth Vader (Star Wars)
The Dark Phoenix (X-Men)
Artimesia (Rise of an Empire)
Harvey Dent (The Dark Knight)
Gollum (LOTR)
Javert (Les Miserables)
Frollo (The Huntchback of Notre Dame)

The Ra’s Al Ghul Complex
Okay, you could argue that this is the same thing as the Obi Wan Kenobi… which is why I was hesitant to mention this. It’s basically the Obi Wan Kenobi complex with a single provision; the mentor is either a dark character, or one with an opposing viewpoint and s/he is someone that the hero will eventually need to confront and/or kill in order to grow and succeed. In some of the better stories where this complex appears, the mentor turns out to be the actual villain.
Examples:
Kreia (Knights of the Old Republic 2)
Tolwyn (Wing Commander)
Palpatine (Revenge of the Sith)

The Greek Tragedy Complex.

I name this one as such because, too often in Greek mythology, we see characters get their fate revealed to them which then sets them on a quest to prevent said fate. In every case, we see those trying to cheat fate actually directly causing it to happen through their own actions. Oedipus is a perfect example of this; it is foretold that he would kill his father and marry his mother. He leaves his family, runs off, and then kills someone who crashed into him. He then marries that man’s wife… come to find out that those were his real parents.
Basically a character that falls into this category is desperately trying to do good, he wants to save someone or something, but every time he tries to do good, his actions cause more evil. The character who has this is usually not a strong character. It’s someone who either has tunnel vision, is single-minded, and/or has no dynamic qualities at all.
A Character afflicted with this problem is cursed with knowing the outcome of a situation and/or his own fate or that of a loved one. Like Oedipus himself, when these character’s learn of what is to happen, they do everything they can to escape what is to happen.
The problem is that these characters are willing to do anything, and I mean anything to change the outcome. They often become so blinded by desperation that they don’t see what effect’s their actions are having. In the end, their actions are what causes the foreshadow to come true.

A perfect example of this is Anakin Skywalker in Revenge of the Sith. He has a revelation that his wife is going to die during childbirth. It’s unclear whether his friend Palpatine planted this image there to drive him down the dark path, but I always suspected that this was the case, especially since he begins to temp Anakin with the promise of a power great enough to prevent people from dying.

Anakin is desperate and willing to do anything to prevent the death of his wife. He goes to the point of sacrificing his own soul to keep her alive and safe. The problem is that she becomes so overwhelmed with sadness over what he has done, that she looses the will to live and dies anyway.
Though we can’t say for certain she would have survived had Anakin not fallen to the dark side, I think it’s a pretty safe assumption. At the very least, her chances would have been better.

Oddly enough, despite these characters being weak, they are actually easy to relate to. How many of us wouldn’t go to extreme lengths to save someone we care about or change a fate we find undesirable?

Now keep in mind, not all characters fall into these categories, but in my opinion, some of the best do. You have the quintessential good guys and the one-dimensional villains as well as a plethora of other characters, but these were the ones that have always stood out the most to me.

September 24, 2014 + Artist, Cover, Graphic design, Inspiration, literature

My cover artists

by Jim

They say don’t judge a book by it’s cover and that’s good advice… but a good cover helps whet interest and attract an audience. I’ve been fortunate to work with some truly incredible artists who have helped bring my work to life.

Cover Art by Christina Pankievich
My cousin and a truly wonderful artist. She was nice enough to take care of the first cover for me and I am greatly appreciative.

Cover art by Helder Olivier

Another great artist. When my cousin was unavailable to do the cover, I put a post out on my facebook page for a graphic designer and he immediately came up. He was a wonderful person to work with, his art is terrific and, as you can tell from this, he has quite the pension for jewelry design. I highly recommend checking out his page!
Helder‘s page

Cover art by Brett Warniers.

Every artist that I have worked with over time has been an absolute joy. Last and by no means least is the insanely talented Brett. His cover art broke the simplicity mode that I had confined myself up until now, thinking that it was the only way to attract attention… I was wrong and he showed me that.
He came recommended by a close friend and after seeing his other work, I could not refuse his talents. His work really speaks for itself and he has accepted the monumental task of creating the cover for the biggest work I’ve ever put out: Divinity. I can’t wait to see what he comes up with.

Brett’s Page

Tina is unfortunately (or VERY fortunately depending on which side you are on) very busy with other projects and doesn’t have a page anymore. However Brett and Helder are accessible through their pages and their art work is well worth the money! You will not be disappointed.

September 24, 2014 + advice, fantasy, ficiton, rules, Urban Fantasy, Writing

Rules…

by Jim

I heard someone talk about this a while back and I 100% agree with the thought process here. When you begin writing, the first step in creating the world that you’re setting your characters down in is to determine what can happen and what can not happen.

Remember the basics; Who, what, where, when, why, and how?

Let’s take me for example. I write historical fantasies. One of my major vices is people who get historical details wrong, or try to place their story in a time that actually happened, alter a lot of history, but expect everything that happened in history to still flow normally.

“It’s said that if you bend but one blade of grass, you run the risk of altering history.”

You’re not going to tell me that certain things just… happened, changed history from how we know it, but everything proceeded normally. Sorry, that’s too much to buy for me. Now if your goal was to create an alternate future where some things are the same, but there are small differences between our world and the one you’ve created, great! That’s something I would love to read about.

So when I write my historical stories, one rule that I absolutely must follow at all times;

Nothing can happen in your story that would change History. Your story can influence historical events, but only so much in that they influence events to happen AS THEY ACTUALLY HAPPENED! Otherwise, you’re going into a type of story that, in my opinion, falls outside the realm of historical fantasy/fiction.

So back to basics:

Who? This applies to both Historical and Fictional Characters.
What? Historical Events.
Where? A place of historical importance.
When? A time period of historical significance.
How? … well for me, I make sure that my story influences events so that they happen as they should.
Example: One character in one of my stories is moved by the events in the story that he lays down his sword and refuses to take up arms again. This actually happens in this character’s history and results in a major historical event.
The other option I use is to essentially keep the story out of History’s way. Essentially this means that the story happens in a setting that really never made it into the history books or was simply never chronicled.

All of this is just one example of rules that can/should be used when creating a story. I’m not saying that there is a specific set of rules that need to be followed. You create the rules and you stick to them. It not only helps continuity, but it keeps the readers understanding of what’s going on intact.

Another good example is Magnifica. If/when a character dies, why can’t the enchanter just snap his fingers and bring said person back to life?
Well because that falls outside of the enchanter’s rules.
Enchanters can’t interfere with the nature of the Universe. An enchanter tainted by darkness cannot effectively use healing powers. The use of dark enchantments corrodes the soul and will result in the enchanter’s eventual death. In 2013, there are no enchanters to learn from, so anyone who discovers that they have powers are limited to what information they can find on how to enchant… and there isn’t much information left.

Rules are a useful tool to staying on course and explaining why a story involving super natural elements can’t be solved with the flick of the wrist.

What happens when rules are overlooked? Well… as much as I lament using this as an example…

Perhaps the biggest plot hole in one of my favorite movies that was never explained. Why couldn’t they just ride the Eagles to Mordor?
Unfortunately it’s the one that fan boys like to pick at, but it could have been resolved if a rule was put into place to explain it:
The Eagles feared Mordor for some reason.
Sauron had some kind of force-field in place to prevent them from getting there and it would only collapse once he was dead.
The orcs had large ballistas that could be used to shoot down the Eagles so it wasn’t worth the risk.

Any one of those would have been fine, but instead it was never addressed.

So yeah, rules in a story that the characters must follow are very important and it’s a good idea to have them spelled out early on so that there isn’t confusion and it doesn’t look like your just making things up as you go later on. Good foreshadowing also helps with creating rules.

So that’s my 2 cents. Hope it helped!

See you on the flipside!
-Jim