For reals this time, I wrote some more Effulgent Corruption, and I think I'm finally (for reals this time) starting to get into it (for reals this time).
What I did today (writing wise, the rest of it was studying, which is boring):
- Helped a friend brainstorm an idea for a scene.
- Wrote a good half-chapter in Effulgent Corruption
- Listened to feedback for said chapter (as well as read said brainstormed chapter above and offered feedback)
- Helped the friend (aka Jason) figure out the rest of his book. Jason is plagued by that constant new writer problem: great writing, fun characters, but can't finish a book for the life of him. After plotting and figuring out the end (which, to my surprise, Jason doesn't really plan out, at least not for the most recent novels), our combined powers produced some ideas I thought were actually quite fantastic, and I'm excited to see where his book ends up.
- Brainstormed the next bit in Effulgent Corruption. Actually, I've had this scene planned for a while, and already it's going differently than planned (as it happens when my characters just do whatever they want). Hopefully I can divert them in the right direction.
School with lots of work and a test tomorrow. But I will still try and write 1k. We also beat Diablo II (with expansion) today, so hopefully that will stop any future distractions (yeah, right).
ALSO: We have moved! I have a Writing Room! Expect pictures soon! Hint: It's tricked out in a big way.
Bit from EC I wrote today (not my best, but we'll take it)
The dark man didn’t answer at first. Instead, he just stared at Drake’s face, his eyes squinting, as if trying to decipher something. Drake let him, returning the gaze, determination set in his eyes. The man now spoke in a whisper.
“You were a Kian, yes? Rich? Did not see many Marked, except perhaps servants or slaves. Aia, Miasa?”
Drake didn’t know if he should tell this man his past so openly, but despite his better instincts he gave a slight nod. The Diasaran kept staring.
“Lliar,” he finally said. “General Lliar, aia?”
Drake blinked, then set his jaw. “It isn’t polite to ask one’s name without giving your own, Diasaran. And I asked you a question.”
The dark-skinned man’s lips rose again into a wide smile. “Yes, you are right, Miasa. They called me Flikanda, you may do so if you wish.”
Drake shook his head. “I want your name, Diasaran. Then, perhaps I will tell you mine.”
The man shrugged nonchalantly. “As you wish. My full name is Ziahandara Liam Hanealem. However, that is far too long for any to speak should they wish to keep their breath, so you may call me by my nichanda, nickname: Zahed.”
- Effulgent Corruption, Chapter 4: Zahed
Who I write like: Huh.
on Sunday, July 18, 2010
I found this site on the internet. Here are some interesting results (I only posted one chapter in for each)
Effulgent Corruption:
Where Gods and Mortals Dance
Paradies Seekers
Lacrymosa
I found it interesting none of these things were the same. They were all different people, even though some of them, particularly WGMD and Effulgent Corruption, were both done in an extremely similar style.
Though the Paradise Seekers --> Shakespeare thing is the weirdest. But look, it didn't say James Dashner, so it isn't like The Maze Runner. Ha ha, take that. :P
Effulgent Corruption:
Where Gods and Mortals Dance
Paradies Seekers
I write like
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare
I Write Like by Mémoires, Mac journal software. Analyze your writing!
Lacrymosa
I found it interesting none of these things were the same. They were all different people, even though some of them, particularly WGMD and Effulgent Corruption, were both done in an extremely similar style.
Though the Paradise Seekers --> Shakespeare thing is the weirdest. But look, it didn't say James Dashner, so it isn't like The Maze Runner. Ha ha, take that. :P
BOOK REVIEW - White Night by Jim Butcher
on Thursday, July 15, 2010
Buy it here: White Night
Blurb Review
Taking the wealth of information and buildup that has been the foundation for the Dresden books thus far, White Night is a culmination of just about everything fantastic in the Dresden files. While it might not discover new tidbits or exciting revelations about Harry's character, White Night is just what it is: another fantastic, riveting adventure starring Harry Dresden.
Full Review
Harry is back. If I remember my history of this series correctly, they were all originally published in paperback only (much like Larry Corria's Monster Hunter books). However, after some point, Butcher's publisher finally realized exactly what a phenomenon these books were, and so White Night was simultaneously published in both hardcover and paperback. Yay!
This is also the only Dresden book that has maintained a perfect 5/5 star rating on amazon.com, based on 150 reviews (link above next to "Buy it here"). So, going into it, I expected a lot.
Hot of the heels of Proven Guilty, Harry as a new apprentice, the war is still going on between vampires and wizards (it's been almost 4 years I believe since Summer Knight), and Murphy needs him to help solve a case. Big surprise. White Night is almost traditional in how it follows the similar style as the first two books, Storm Front and Fool Moon. Unlike these books, however, Butcher has had years of experience in his belt, so he takes the mystery and does it right.
Somebody is killing witches in Chicago, and leaving a trail that only magic can find. This leads Dresden to believe the killer is sending a message to him, which sends him off on yet another crazy adventure. He once again is thrown into a conflict between himself and the White Court of Vampires (the main big, bad monster from Blood Rites, vampires who feed off human emotions). It eventually culminates into a vampire duel (reminding one of Death Masks) as well as a sort of vampire party (ala Grave Peril). It works, very well, though there are a few slight problems.
But back to the good stuff: this book really felt like a "best of" Dresden book. Butcher did little to mix up the formula that has worked so well for his other books; in fact, he is almost religiously loyal to the pacing and setup that made all the other books great. As mentioned above, bits seem taken out of the best parts of previous books, which works too. Also Elaine, Dresden's old flame from his childhood (who was last seen in Summer Knight) also shows up, as well as a lot of other character. I'm pretty sure the only ones not here from other books were Billy and the werewolf pack, and Susan (though she is mentioned). Butcher does an exceptional job with this series: he doesn't throw all the characters in at once; he spaces them out so, once you really start to wonder where they are, they come back. It is a testament to his fantastic planning (minus the first two books).
White Night is very fast, and you learn a few new snippets about Harry and the supporting cast. Molly, his apprentice newly established in Proven Guilty, is back and has grown up a little. Rameriez, one of my favorite Wardens who played a key role in the climactic battle at the end of Dead Beat (you know, the one with the zombie T-Rex Harry rides), is also here in full force. He's sort of a womanizing, arrogant joker, and actually plays very well with Harry's sense of humor (and falls into a rather amusing and revealing joke at the end of White Night that had me laughing quite hard). As a book, it reads very well.
I did have a few complaints, however. As mentioned before, it's a bit formulaic: Butcher just stuck with what worked and rolled with it. This is fine, I suppose, but considering this is the 9th book in the series, I was hoping he'd keep on improving so the formula wouldn't go stale (it was running the risk at the end). I'd also like to point out that the ending was really a lot like the ending of both Grave Peril and Blood Rites, which again falls into that formula thing. Lastly, I really wanted more Molly. She's his apprentice, and I can understand him sheltering her, but she really just didn't seem to exist for a good 90% of this book. Considering what a key role she played in Proven Guilty, I was sad to see her set into the backburner.
Still, White Night is a lot of fun, and certainly worth reading. Oh; there is one key point I forgot to mention: Something rather monumental that has been hanging over Harry's head since freaking Death Masks (Book 5) FINALLY gets resolved in this book. I spend the last four books wondering how he was going to beat it, and I was very satisfied with how it resolved. The downer is that was my main concern with Harry in terms of internal conflict, and now that it's done I feel a bit sad.
At any rate, if you've followed the series to book 9 at this point, you probably don't care about what I wrote here. Point is: if you love Dresden, you won't be disappointed, just don't expecting as mind blowing in its revelations as Death Masks, Blood Rites, or Proven Guilty.
Book Covers - Some Favorites and Not So Much
on Thursday, July 8, 2010
Since we are still talking about book covers, I thought I'd make a post about some book covers I like. As stated in my previous post, I consider a title and cover to be one of the most important "hooks" a novel can have, when it is sitting on that boring old shelf at the bookstore. Again, went to Barnes and Noble yesterday, and it was clear some awesome covers stuck out, and some not-as-awesome covers made me just not care.
So, first, let's go by some authors!
Brandon Sanderson
Brandon has had some...really odd covers. First print Mistborn is too easy to pick on, so let's just talk about his first novel, Elantris.
So, here we have the US cover. Not bad, right? It doesn't scream "generic fantasy," but a casual observer has no idea what's going on. That's what bothers me a lot about covers: in order to know what is going on, you have to get a good 1/3 through the book. But the cover is there for people who don't know what is going on to be enticed. So, in that vein, wouldn't something artistic work better?
Hot damn! This is the German Elantris cover, and I often consider it the best of his (out of all his covers). Elantris is about a cursed city. This cover is simple, clean, easy on the eyes, and gets the idea across. It also looks cool. However, there is another Elantris cover that is also pretty rad...
This is the Japanese Elantris cover. You can see the regional art style influencing it; it has a somewhat "anime" flavor. Plus, there's some weird rodant thing in the bottom right. I don't remember that being in the book. But dude: look how cool Prince Raoden looks! He's like a total badass! Though he does remind me of Cecil from Final Fantasy IV...
Ok, so Elantris has some good covers. What about some awful ones? Pretty much all the Warbreaker covers were pretty ugly.
This is the US release of Warbreaker. Truthfully, it's a decent picture, and I like the colors. The font looks like it was just done using a generic photoshop filter, and Sanderson is starting that whole "my name is bigger than the title" thing that people do when they get big. The problem with this cover is that it just...doesn't make sense. The first thing I thought when I saw it was, "Oh look, it's Storm from the X-Men eating a Fruit-by-the-foot." Seriously. It looks just like that. But somebody thought it was a cool idea, because the audiobook took the fuglyness to a new level.
Ignoring the fact that GraphicAudio advertises it as "A Movie in your Mind!" (hooray for brain invasion!), this picture is essentially like the first Warbreaker cover, except drawn by someone who graduated with an undergrad in pastels. There's just too much crap in this picture. Though, I do like the dress on the girl (I forgot her name; I kind of repressed Warbreaker from my mind).
But none of this compares to the current (?) Warbreaker cover, or at least the one they are advertising.
I dunno if this is a placeholder or something, but holy crap. I don't think I need to tell you why this cover looks awful. It should be pretty freaking obvious.
Robert Jordan
I've never liked the Wheel of Time covers, except the very first one. This is for the hardcover books. They've had the same artist throughout, and the usually depict some unknown scene from the book, and usually it involves them standing around or doing nothing. Seriously, not very exciting. Plus, since the series started like a billion years ago, what was popular for fantasy covers then just doesn't fly now. But, they still use the same guy (guess he signed some deal?) so we won't see the end of it until Brandon finishes the series.
This, however, is excluding the audiobooks. Let's take a look at just one of them, The Shadow Rising.
Well, out of all the Wheel of Time covers, this one at least has nice colors. You have two guys hanging around, smoking, while the woman is cooking. Yeah, ok, it's a bit of a sexist cover (why are the guys standing around while she does all the work? Shouldn't they at least be fighting baddies or something?), but there isn't anything (minus the blatant sexism) that leaps out at you. Compare this to the audiobooks, which all have totally different covers from the regular books.
Holy. Crap. There's Mat, who was previously just sitting around and making a woman cook for him, and is now walking in front of some gnarled old tree with ravens and a HUGE FREAKING SPEAR on his shoulders, looking totally badass. In fact, all the audiobook covers look significantly cooler than their hardcover equivalents. Wow.
Jim Butcher
If you've been to a store recently, you've seen Jim Butcher's books. All the covers are pretty much the same: the artist picks some background color theme (yellow, green, blue, etc.) and then puts a dark, brooding Harry Dresden in front, staff in hand, hat on his head (he doesn't ever wear a hat!), and with a black background. If you think these get a little repetitive, at least they don't print the original covers anymore.
Ugh. Look at that title. Each letter is in its own box? That looks freaking awful! All the way up until Proven Guilty (if I remember correctly), they used this style on the covers. It looks terrible. Just look at any of the reviews I've done, and you can see how much better it looks.
Before we move on, however, I'd like to point out a Dresden cover that I really like, a lot. It is actually the book I'm currently reading, and it has stuck out with me before I even started considering the series.
Now, this isn't much different from the other covers. Brooding Harry, with hat (ugh), and staff, obnoxious SciFi channel logo on the cover...all accounted for. However, you'll notice something completely different: THIS COVER IS WHITE. That's right; every Dresden book up until this point has been black themed, but this is the only white cover. Imagine, looking on a bookstore shelf. You have piles of black Dresden books, and suddenly this one lunges at you like an bastard child. It's brilliant. As of now, there is no other Dresden book that is white, though the next one (Ghost Story), which is a start of the new Dresden "season" is white. Are the next 12 Dresden books going to be white now? Except one, that will be black? I'm really thinking about this too much.
James Dashner
As a person, I like James Dashner quite a bit. He's got a sort of reserved, biting sense of humor that I totally enjoy. Having him on panels at Conduit and during his guest visit in Sanderson's class last Winter was a real treat. He pointed out then some of his book covers, and I'd like to pull up this horrible gem from his first series.
This just screams small publisher. Some generic kid's face (who gets flipped and put on the other side for the rest of the series' covers), and some generic landscape they probably googled and then slapped on the cover. Not to mention the title "A Gift of Ice" blends a little too well with the gray snow behind it, while the Jimmy Fincher Saga on top is orange for some god-only-knows reason. Ugh.
Then, he wrote The Maze Runner, and now has a big pool of money a-la Scrooge McDuck.
Yeah, it's an ok cover. Having the "James" and "Dashner" not line up perfectly gives it a modern feel, as does the odd font. The background picture is OK, though you have to look twice or three times to figure out what is going on, which I never thought was a great thing. Luckily, the foreign rights people knew how to make a cover totally awesome.
Holy movie poster! It even has a tagline: "Remember. Survive. Run." As we are a nation raised on media, that title is certain to grab you.
As a bonus, recently posted on Dashner's blog, we have the Brazilian version, which looks straight out of some horror novel.
Creepy. Though I think "movie poster" up there is still the best.
John Bellairs
As stated in my review, The Face in the Frost is one of my favorite books ever. The image I used in the review I considered to be an ok cover...it has an "early 90s" feel to it, but hey...it works. What doesn't work is the re-issue cover, that looks putrid.
Way to take my favorite book, and make it unappealing in nearly every way. This one is worst than the Jimmy Fitcher book above...they didn't even bother blowing up the background image to fill the cover. This doesn't even look "small publisher" bad...it looks "self published" bad. Bellairs deserved better.
Luckily, the picture on the audiobook is totally rad.
Yeah, there you go. Some sweet wizard looking in the green-glass paperweight and seeing a freaking skull. Plus, there's that cool mouse in the back. I never did figure out what that guy's deal was. Keep in mind, it was this cover, solely the cover, that caused me to pick up the audiobook fromt he library in the first place. So there's gotta be something there.
Orson Scott Card
I'll be honest: I'm not a fan of Mr. Card's work. I love his writing for the Living Scriptures cartoons, and Ender's Game and Ender's Shadow are great. I just don't like anything else he wrote (including the rest of the Ender series).
So, Ender's Game is a great book. But it has never had a good cover. Here's the one it had when I picked up the book (I totally grabbed it by random when I was like 12, by the way. Nobody suggested it; I just thought it was a book I would read).
Not bad. Plus it has a bunch of awards on it. However, I've read this book like 20 times, and I still have no idea what scene this is from the bok. Is this Ender flying to that space station at the beginning? Or maybe the one at the end? Or maybe on his super emo-journey at the very end so Mr. Card could put out more sequels?
One thing I do know is that it is a billion times better than this cover they put out a while back, when I guess they decided to try and market the book to kids.
Out of all the terrible covers I've posted, this one is my personal "most despised." Ender's Game is a dark book, about kids playing super-violent games and adults purposefully manipulating them to make them into soulless, killing tacticians. This looks like something out of Tron starring that kid from The Sixth Sense. It makes it look like fun, never mind the fact that they were shooting each other, swearing and intimidating each other constantly, and pretty much being put through kid hell. Just looking at the cover makes me want to punch whoever green-lighted it. Ugh.
Dan Wells
Yeah, these are primarily Mormon authors. I'm Mormon too, so it happens. Shut up.
Dan's book first made it big in the UK, and while I thought the cover was ok, it was uninspired.
I didn't think the US version was much better. It lost that super bright, eyeball burning red that just sears into your brain, but it also got really boring.
Better? Yeah. And there's some blood. But...why is it on a sheet of lined paper? What's up with that? No clue.
Then, Wells US cover artist got CRAZY good, and released two of my favorite covers ever.
Wow! These look great! Mr. Monster is my personal favorite (very minimalist, but surprisingly dark), and I Don't Want to Kill You also looks really fun.
Here's a cool link to his cover artist's walkthrough on how he decided to make these covers. It's a great read!
A few more
Here's a few more random covers I think look cool. Some are from books I've read, some not. I just like them.
Got some favorite covers? Let me know in the comments!
Nathan Major vs. Writing Excuses
on Tuesday, July 6, 2010
I find it interesting that I just posted on how first sentence obsessions annoy me, and that same Sunday the Writing Excuses podcast ("Mating Plumage") was on first sentences, covers, and titles.
I found myself agreeing with Dashner on the majority of the subjects. Book covers are what really help pull me in, as well as titles. For me, the "judging" period of the book happens before I even begin to open it. As I've said countless times, I started really noticing the Dresden files because of how cool I thought the covers were (also because there were so many, which means they must be good if he gets 12 books out). Other instances include The Eye of the World, which I started reading because the cover was cool, and I Am Not a Serial Killer, which I knew about because of Writing Excuses, but the title was what really solidified my desire to read the book. The Maze Runner was also a book that I wanted to read because of the title. I actually have actively averted myself from Dashner's other big series, The 13th Reality, because I thought the series title was extremely generic (sorry James, but I still think that. I'm going to give the books a shot, though...someday). On the other side, A Series of Unfortunate Events sucked me in because of the clever series title.
So, I agree that covers and titles do influence me. Call me shallow, but there are a lot of books in the bookstore, and a lot of bad fantasy novels for sale. When a book has a cool title, I'll pull it off. If the cover is also quite awesome, I might flip it open. If it doesn't have this (or I haven't heard of it), odds are I'm going to leave it where I found it.
I think it's this point (where I flip open the book) that many authors get more hung up than they should. If I'm going to spend my money on a book, that decision is not hinged on that first sentence. Given enough time and money, anybody would write a zingy, catchy first sentence. It says nothing about the skill of the author if your first sentence is clever. A first chapter (or first three-four pages) would be a much better assessment.
I will admit a clever first sentence has a pull that one can't explain. Even I experience it. However, I'll never stop reading a book I'm interested in if the first sentence isn't catchy, but I might read more of a book if the first sentence is really grabby. I think of Monster Hunter International by Larry Correia and how it snagged me because of the first sentence. I gave it more of a chance (I'm not a huge gun nut, so I wasn't sure how the book would appeal to me) because that first sentence was a witty, clever hook. Would I have still tried out the book if the first sentence has been dull? Yes. But I wouldn't have had that little happy "zing!" that pushed me to like it a little further.
I'd argue that your cover, title, and first page/chapter are what sells a reader, as well as your blurb on the back/side. Yes, the first sentence is important, but it really isn't all that fantastic as people crank it up to be.
That being said, BRIEF TANGENT: I think titles are super-important. This is mostly because this is one of the few things the author has actual control of that goes on the outside (jacket) of the novel (besides their name). Other people draw maps, cover art, sometimes edit your blurbs for the back, etc. But the TITLE is yours. Yeah, sometimes they want you to edit it, but it really is your only possession.
Which is why a lot of the time it takes me a while to craft titles. Paradise Seekers is one so far that I actually don't really like the title. An idea I had originally was Thanatophobia (Fear of Death), or Somniphobia (Fear of Sleep). In the end, both didn't really work for a YA novel, and Paradise Seekers alone has enough hidden subtleties to work. It isn't Where Gods and Mortals Dance, The Reigns of the World, or Lacrymosa, but it works.
I also hate Harbinger's title, but I have no idea what to do with that anyway.
END TANGENT
This blog post is coming from a consumer, who had to spend a good hour in Barnes and Noble last week figuring out how to spend a gift card.
The moral of the story is Writing Excuses is wrong, and I'm clearly right. Because it's my blog and I say so. (Don't I wish... :P)
BONUS!
I often envision title art for novels as I write them, and I can say my tastes lean towards minimalistic. Maybe I'll do a blog post on it sometime, with which covers are my favorites and which I find to be kind of...lacking.
At any rate, it would be interesting (assuming any of this crap I write ever gets published) to see what a publishing house would like to put on as a cover. Considering my incredibly picky tastes, I'd probably hate just about everything, but something about a cover seems to be meant to convey the soul of the novel (ones that just show a single scene picked from the book frustrate me). So, in that regard, I've always felt that minimalistic covers work (I hate to say this, but Twilight had an extremely clever and well-chosen cover. Too bad whatever cleverness or symbolism was found in the first cover was completely lost in the sequels).
Cover ideas for my books!
Lacrymosa - This was actually a game before, and we made a title screen (which I have somewhere) which I liked. A single white feather, lying on a ground of black, with the title above it.
Harbinger - No idea, actually. I never thought about this one. Probably a character montage, honestly.
Where Gods and Mortals Dance - Similar to Lacrymosa, except replace the feather with one of the pear/teardrop shaped masks the gods wear. You know, the thing could just be lying there.
Paradise Seekers - This one's easy, the silhouette of a tire swing against a setting sun. If you REALLY wanted to add something, you could put a boy and a girl hand in hand off in the distance, but the tire swing would be in the foreground still.
Yeah, it's self centered to make you read this, but it's my blog so ha ha ha. Anybody else think of covers for their books as they are writing them?
I found myself agreeing with Dashner on the majority of the subjects. Book covers are what really help pull me in, as well as titles. For me, the "judging" period of the book happens before I even begin to open it. As I've said countless times, I started really noticing the Dresden files because of how cool I thought the covers were (also because there were so many, which means they must be good if he gets 12 books out). Other instances include The Eye of the World, which I started reading because the cover was cool, and I Am Not a Serial Killer, which I knew about because of Writing Excuses, but the title was what really solidified my desire to read the book. The Maze Runner was also a book that I wanted to read because of the title. I actually have actively averted myself from Dashner's other big series, The 13th Reality, because I thought the series title was extremely generic (sorry James, but I still think that. I'm going to give the books a shot, though...someday). On the other side, A Series of Unfortunate Events sucked me in because of the clever series title.
So, I agree that covers and titles do influence me. Call me shallow, but there are a lot of books in the bookstore, and a lot of bad fantasy novels for sale. When a book has a cool title, I'll pull it off. If the cover is also quite awesome, I might flip it open. If it doesn't have this (or I haven't heard of it), odds are I'm going to leave it where I found it.
I think it's this point (where I flip open the book) that many authors get more hung up than they should. If I'm going to spend my money on a book, that decision is not hinged on that first sentence. Given enough time and money, anybody would write a zingy, catchy first sentence. It says nothing about the skill of the author if your first sentence is clever. A first chapter (or first three-four pages) would be a much better assessment.
I will admit a clever first sentence has a pull that one can't explain. Even I experience it. However, I'll never stop reading a book I'm interested in if the first sentence isn't catchy, but I might read more of a book if the first sentence is really grabby. I think of Monster Hunter International by Larry Correia and how it snagged me because of the first sentence. I gave it more of a chance (I'm not a huge gun nut, so I wasn't sure how the book would appeal to me) because that first sentence was a witty, clever hook. Would I have still tried out the book if the first sentence has been dull? Yes. But I wouldn't have had that little happy "zing!" that pushed me to like it a little further.
I'd argue that your cover, title, and first page/chapter are what sells a reader, as well as your blurb on the back/side. Yes, the first sentence is important, but it really isn't all that fantastic as people crank it up to be.
That being said, BRIEF TANGENT: I think titles are super-important. This is mostly because this is one of the few things the author has actual control of that goes on the outside (jacket) of the novel (besides their name). Other people draw maps, cover art, sometimes edit your blurbs for the back, etc. But the TITLE is yours. Yeah, sometimes they want you to edit it, but it really is your only possession.
Which is why a lot of the time it takes me a while to craft titles. Paradise Seekers is one so far that I actually don't really like the title. An idea I had originally was Thanatophobia (Fear of Death), or Somniphobia (Fear of Sleep). In the end, both didn't really work for a YA novel, and Paradise Seekers alone has enough hidden subtleties to work. It isn't Where Gods and Mortals Dance, The Reigns of the World, or Lacrymosa, but it works.
I also hate Harbinger's title, but I have no idea what to do with that anyway.
END TANGENT
This blog post is coming from a consumer, who had to spend a good hour in Barnes and Noble last week figuring out how to spend a gift card.
The moral of the story is Writing Excuses is wrong, and I'm clearly right. Because it's my blog and I say so. (Don't I wish... :P)
BONUS!
I often envision title art for novels as I write them, and I can say my tastes lean towards minimalistic. Maybe I'll do a blog post on it sometime, with which covers are my favorites and which I find to be kind of...lacking.
At any rate, it would be interesting (assuming any of this crap I write ever gets published) to see what a publishing house would like to put on as a cover. Considering my incredibly picky tastes, I'd probably hate just about everything, but something about a cover seems to be meant to convey the soul of the novel (ones that just show a single scene picked from the book frustrate me). So, in that regard, I've always felt that minimalistic covers work (I hate to say this, but Twilight had an extremely clever and well-chosen cover. Too bad whatever cleverness or symbolism was found in the first cover was completely lost in the sequels).
Cover ideas for my books!
Lacrymosa - This was actually a game before, and we made a title screen (which I have somewhere) which I liked. A single white feather, lying on a ground of black, with the title above it.
Harbinger - No idea, actually. I never thought about this one. Probably a character montage, honestly.
Where Gods and Mortals Dance - Similar to Lacrymosa, except replace the feather with one of the pear/teardrop shaped masks the gods wear. You know, the thing could just be lying there.
Paradise Seekers - This one's easy, the silhouette of a tire swing against a setting sun. If you REALLY wanted to add something, you could put a boy and a girl hand in hand off in the distance, but the tire swing would be in the foreground still.
Yeah, it's self centered to make you read this, but it's my blog so ha ha ha. Anybody else think of covers for their books as they are writing them?
WEEKLY WORD COUNT - Week of June 27 - July 4
on Monday, July 5, 2010
Week Dates: 6/27 - 7/4, 2010.
Word Count This Week (Effulgent Corruption): ~2,000.
Word Count This Week (Other; Writing Exercise): ~2,000
Words Total for Effulgent Corruption: 6,881
---------------------------------
Excerpts from this week:
“There is some strength to him, though,” the voice was feminine and unfamiliar, coming from behind the large man blocking the doorway. Drake saw a slim figure step into the room, holding the bright torch. Drake blinked, rubbing his eyes with a dirty, unfeeling hand in an attempt to see. The corruption marks on both his hands glowed quietly; the left one blue, the other red, though they didn’t seem to emit any light on the nearby walls. The woman’s eyes shone a brilliant pale aqua in the torchlight. It was then Drake realized that she wasn’t holding a torch in her hand; it was her palm itself that was illuminated and sending flickering flames up her fingertips. Her hand was dark black, and Drake could see the weaving lines of corruption, like grasping vines, had crept up her wrists. They continued up to where the sleeve of her robe lay, about halfway up her forearm. The woman looked Drake up and down as of considering an animal for purchase, eyes sparkling in her created firelight.
- Effulgent Corruption, Chapter 2 - Prisoner
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Well, I haven't done one of these in a while. This is only about two days worth of writing; the rest of the week was spent planning or doing school (which I'm still doing).
Effulgent Corruption is crawling its way back to life from the gutter, and hopefully we'll see more of it shortly. I'm still shooting for 1k a day minimum, even though I have two tests this week and have been stressing out over those. Plus, we are getting ready to move, which will take up a decent chunk of time.
The general idea is I'm under-motivated in nearly every regard concerning writing. No idea what this slump is (especially since the transition from WGMD to Paradise Seekers was so smooth...sort of), but I'm going to keep writing until I kill it.
I also wrote an epic fantasy this week starring poodles and cats. Pretty much I wrote it like it was epic fantasy, except they were all fuzzy animals and had lame names like "Fluffypaws" or something. It was entertaining. Maybe I'll post it here so everybody can see how completely stupid it is. That sounds like a great idea.
At any rate, I'm reading Dresden, doing school, writing, and playing xbox when I get stressed. Yep, that's about it. Happy 4th (or 5th now) of July and all that, and I'll see you next week.
BOOK REVIEW - Proven Guilty by Jim Butcher
Buy it here: Proven Guilty
Blurb Review
While it might not be Harry Dresden vs The World like previous installments, Proven Guilty is easily the best book yet, with how it focuses more on "close to home" problems for Harry rather than larger, broader issues. Combining real, raw emotion with moral dilemmas that help define Harry, Proven Guilty has that rewarding feeling you can only get on long book series like this.
Full Review
This is probably my favorite Dresden book yet, passing Death Masks up, if just barely. As I said in previous reviews. Grave Peril was where Butcher essentially goes action crazy, and Summer Knight is the slower, more methodical version of Harry Dresden. It showed both sides of Butcher's writing, tons of action or lots of emotion, and the books since have been trying to find that magical hybrid that would make them perfect.
Dead Beat was extremely close, even though the first bits were slow. But with Proven Guilty, Butcher has completely nailed it. This is exactly the type of book I was thinking of reading when I first went into the series: great action, real emotion, exciting characters I cared and worried about, and moral dilemmas that shape Harry as a character, as well as the people around him. Also, we finally have Murphy and Harry talking about their "relationship" (or lack thereof) which this series has needed since like the second book.
The book also has the best first chapter, I think, of any of the books so far. Harry Dresden is now enlisted as a Warden of the White Council (he was last book, actually), because their war against the vampires has thinned their ranks so much they need all the help they can get. The book begins with a grisly execution of a young teenaged warlock, a boy who unwittingly used black magic. In the White Council's laws, you don't get a second chance (though Harry did, years before), and so he is executed.
As you can guess, this doesn't sit well with Harry, and it sets the tone for the rest of the book. Dark, personal, and full of moral conflict. The book is a rich adventure that puts the characters you've grown to know and care about to their limits.
It also has Michael, my favorite character in it. Actually, the majority of the book revolves around his wayward daughter, Molly, who has gotten herself into more than she can handle.
Seeking out a dark wizard, Harry ends up at SPLATTERCON!!!!, a horror convention partially run by Molly. It is there that they are attacked by monstrous creatures, being of fairy who feed on terror. Harry figures someone must be summoning them, so off he goes to try and figure it out.
Add tons of twisting subplots involving the Red Court, the continuing conflict between Winter and Summer (the fairy realms), and Molly just being a problem child, and you have a fantastic book. While the conclusion isn't as balls-to-the-wall as some others, (Harry riding a zombie T-Rex or fighting a Fallen Angel on the top of a speeding train comes to mind) it is on a more personal level, one that rakes up the tension and really just works. I've never felt more attached to Harry as a character until now, and I really haven't seen his "true colors" (surprise, he's a really good person) until he's thrown into the fire like this. I couldn't put the book down, literally, it was so good.
I really can't think of anything I didn't like about this novel. There was a lack of Butters, who I don't like, so that works. Michael was in it, albeit at the end. You finally figure out why Charity, Michael's wife, totally despises Harry. Actually, that's another good thing: both Charity and Murphy were being close to becoming two-dimensional. This book totally fixes that, and in the best way. Really good stuff.
So, yeah. I'd say this is the perfect Dresden book (if only it had more Michael...). After inventing me in seven of these books, I can say that this (the eighth) is exactly what I've come to expect. Here's hoping the last four can live up to that expectation (I can't believe I have only four left! What am I going to do with my life after I finish this?!).
Back in the Saddle
on Friday, July 2, 2010
The jury has spoken, I have decided, and I know what I'm writing.
It's Effulgent Corruption. Yep, I went back to it. It has the most planning, the best ideas (so far), and I think will be the easiest to write. It'll be a longer task than a 70k YA novel, but I think I'm up to it.
It took me long enough to realize this is what I should write, but an email from my friend Eric solidified it. I sent him the first chapter of Graffiti, as well as the first chapter of Effulgent Corruption, without any instructions except "here's some stuff I'm working on." The general impression I got was EC was a better bet, which is what I'd secretly been telling myself this entire time, but I refused to admit it.
So yeah, I'm back to being an epic fantasy author. Go me? Plus, it's both a gritty and dark book, which is fun because I have the unrestrained ability to be a total jerk to my characters. Which I will be.
I also went for a "Writing Walk" for the first time in weeks, and it did me a world of good. I know now where the next few chapters in EC will go, and once I pass those, I'm sure I'll think of something.
So, that is it! Wrote about 1.1k in about thirty minutes, hit a chapter break, and will write more tonight. Goal is to get really into this book so I can get back into the 3-5k a day groove.
In other news, I just chipped a crown while writing this. I guess every good thing has to be countered by something bad, but whatever. Screw you, fate!
Expect Effulgent Corruption updates as they come.
It's Effulgent Corruption. Yep, I went back to it. It has the most planning, the best ideas (so far), and I think will be the easiest to write. It'll be a longer task than a 70k YA novel, but I think I'm up to it.
It took me long enough to realize this is what I should write, but an email from my friend Eric solidified it. I sent him the first chapter of Graffiti, as well as the first chapter of Effulgent Corruption, without any instructions except "here's some stuff I'm working on." The general impression I got was EC was a better bet, which is what I'd secretly been telling myself this entire time, but I refused to admit it.
So yeah, I'm back to being an epic fantasy author. Go me? Plus, it's both a gritty and dark book, which is fun because I have the unrestrained ability to be a total jerk to my characters. Which I will be.
I also went for a "Writing Walk" for the first time in weeks, and it did me a world of good. I know now where the next few chapters in EC will go, and once I pass those, I'm sure I'll think of something.
So, that is it! Wrote about 1.1k in about thirty minutes, hit a chapter break, and will write more tonight. Goal is to get really into this book so I can get back into the 3-5k a day groove.
In other news, I just chipped a crown while writing this. I guess every good thing has to be countered by something bad, but whatever. Screw you, fate!
Expect Effulgent Corruption updates as they come.
BOOK REVIEW - Dead Beat by Jim Butcher
on Thursday, July 1, 2010
Buy it here: Dead Beat
Blurb Review
[Author's Note: I was going to write something big here, but after read the last 50 odd pages this was all I could come up with]
This is Dead Beat, the seventh book in the Dresden Files.
In it, Harry Dresden rides a zombie tyrannosaures rex named Sue.
He rides a zombie tyrannosaures rex.
....
This is the greatest book ever written.
Full Review
Now that that is out of the way, here's the real review.
You already know what monsters Harry fought in the last books, so here's what we got in Dead Beat: Zombies and necromancers. And let me say finally, because I've been wanting zombies from book one, and at long last he's blasting some undead. Fantastic.
At any rate, if you thought Summer Knight bumped off all the main characters for a "Harry only" adventure, this one does it even better. Murphy, the cop who often works with Harry, is on vacation. So Harry's alone, living with Thomas (the white court vampire who is crashing at his house) and his now huge dog Mouse, who was a puppy in the last book (yes, that puppy).
At any rate, things pick up quick when the black court vampire we thought was dead in the last book is (SURPRISE!) not actually dead. And she's blackmailing Harry with Murphy's reputation. She wants him to find some book, which he knows nothing about, and give it to her.
Turns out, the book is like the modern version of the Necronomicon, and like five other necromancers who just so happen to be in town also want it. Crap just got real.
Since Butcher decided to dump all the characters except Thomas and Harry (and Thomas does next to nothing the entire book, despite revelations regarding him in Blood Rites), we get a new character: Butters, the mortician. I don't know why Butcher picked that name for him. Mostly because: 1. Most people who read his books are nerds and 2. Most nerds watch South Park. Butters is a friend of the kids in south park, is sort of a goody-two shoes and a coward. Surprise! Butters in Dresden Files is the exact same. Of course, he goes through the usual transformation of "cowering in fright" at the beginning to "sort of growing a pair" at the end of the book, which is both predictable and stupid, because Butters is just a waste of space. Maybe some people find him endearing. I don't.
Which is where Dead Beat shows its main problem: It starts off so freaking slowly. The first half of the book (or even first two thirds) just seems to drag on and on. There is stuff happening, Harry is facing lots of problems (including one that emerged way back at the end of Death Masks, which I'm finally glad to see addressed), so it technically should be entertaining. But, for some reason, the novel flows thicker than molasses. Unlike the last few books, which I've had problems finding stopping places, I found it hard to come back to this one. Not for lack of revelation, character development, or whatever...it was just a bad idea to dump all the other characters and have stupid Butters as his only sidekick. At least Mouse (the dog) is somewhat interesting.
Luckily, despite the novel being slow (which is too bad, because it has zombies and the premise is actually pretty rad), it makes up for it in the last third. And no, I'm not just referring to the zombie t-rex, though that was a highlight. Tons of fantastic things involving the Wardens (basically the White Council's hit squad and enforcers) show up, tying the war with the Red Court back into this book, and making it much more personal than you'd believe. My only problem with the Wardens is Morgan, a Warden who was watching Harry in Storm Front, and basically doesn't like him at all. His character is so amazingly two-dimensional it's frustrating: no matter what the situation he won't believe Harry. It doesn't matter if Harry proves himself right a thousand times, Morgan will still be stupidly bull-headed. I really hate that character, truth be told. He is like all the adults in the Series of Unfortunate Events books: obnoxious and I want to punch them. Except in Series of Unfortunate Events did it on purpose: to be funny. This just frustrates me.
Butcher's humor works and kept me going, and it really hits full throttle at the end of the book. The issue is just with the first part...it just drags (for the reasons above). Other than that, the premise is solid, the prose is reasonably good, and there are things that happen to the "overarching" plot of Harry's life that I'm certain will have both good and bad consequences in the future.
Oh, and did I mention he rides a zombie tyrannosaures rex?
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