Another scene for the new book.

Somehow, scenes with Jake and Sarah are the ones that seem most alive. Got a very dramatic scene that would work at the end of one book and the start of another. It doesn't fit in with any of the existing scenes I've drafted up.. This one's pushing fantasy to the limits, but the potential is there for a very exciting fantasy story. Sarah would have to be the main character for that one and the entire adventure would be seen through her eyes, with Jake as her passive guide. The odds are totally against her and this time, she's on her own. She'd probably freak out many times over before her part in the story is done. It might get a little too wild though, but if I take that route, I'll have to let Sarah drive that story.

Now which story line should I use for the next book? The one that really tortures Sarah to her limits?

One that centers around a human character whose life is entwined with that of the warriors but who stays a human, relying on her wits to survive? She's a female version of Doc in Back to the Future, starting with an attempted suicide scene? I like her better than Sarah. She's a plain jane but has an incredibly brilliant mind. She stays a plain jane throughout but grows more confident as the book goes on so she'd be much easier to relate to.

Another possibility is a plot that flip flops between the world of the warriors and our world. It centers on the son of warriors and his best friend a normal human guy in our world in the internet age, who is brilliant with computers, unleashing... a typical sci-fi what if scenario that leads to catastrophe in one world, and a pure fantasy superhero scenario in the warrior world.

The pieces of the next book are getting wilder as the ideas brew. I might be able to weave all of them into a single 3 part novel? The one with the two guys, spanning two worlds is the most developed of the stories and could be the main plot. The one that tortures Sarah and brings her to breaking down point though just a sketch of 2 scenes, seems the most promising. It could be woven into the subplot involving the world of the warriors.

I also have another subplot that branches out of the cross over between the worlds which could resolve the ending of that battle, involving Torin and a love triangle with new characters.


Whichever route this book goes, it looks like it would be one focused heavily on the characters, their personal struggles and their interpersonal relationships.

I'll let it brew some more and take a life of its own. See how everything falls in place in the end. Write according to how the story eventually flows.

Writing fiction is a lot more fun than my regular work.

Ideas brewing

While waiting for the illustration and editing for my first novel to complete, I'm getting kind of restless again.

The next book. Whose point of view should I use?
I have several conflicting ideas for the next book. Each has its own merits and potential. I especially like an opening scene for the book which starts with a main character all grown up, and flashbacks to his childhood days.

Then I thought of using that book to contrast two completely different marital relationships. The parents of the two main characters when they were kids. The story line wouldn't gel with the opening scene I have in mind.

I'll let all the ideas float around and see what turns up.

Then there is a possibility of Helen as the main character with her internal conflicts, her messed up past that comes into play in her current state of mind, and her friendship with Bob that teeters on romance. Whether or not they cross the line, can't tell at the moment, but the possibility is there. She's another character in the first book, though minor then, she already has established relationships with the rest of the cast which make her a possible main character in the next book.

Or should the book pursue the story from Jake's and Sarah's point of view, continuing where the first left off. Then again, I feel that Jake and Sarah have already told their story. After that book, they'd have stabilized, but they are central to that world.

I'll continue exploring the possibilities, typing out the stray scenes that float up and see how they tie together at the end. Whose point of view would be best for these scenes.

Awaiting editing and cover illustration

Can't believe my part in my book Jake and Sarah - science fiction fantasy epic is finished. I'm renaming it to A Warrior's Death, which is more appropriate than the original at it gives a better feel of the mood of the story.

Yes, there are plenty of deaths and warriors dying and obession with death in that book, together with a tender love story and plenty of horror scenes. Basically, it is a story of extremes. Extreme horror and extreme love. Friendship, love and sacrifice in the world of the warriors and untold torment, torture, gruesome experiments etc in the world of the dark beasts. Two worlds contrasted against each other. Alternating between events that originate from one world and the events from the other. It isn't a sugar sweet story as the original title suggests.

I'm itching to write the next book. I've only just sent out the manuscript to my editor and illustrator. They have yet to read it and I'm already itching to work some scenes for the next one. Still thinking of the POV character and which characters are to be the main characters in the next novel. Jake and Sarah will still play an important role in the next book (somehow, the characters are linked to one another through that pair) but they wouldn't be the main characters anymore. Someone else would take over the main character role. I'm considering using male characters to tell the next novel but it is really hard to get into the head of the opposite sex. Honestly, they seem to be from a different planet altogether.

Or I might take a different approach and pick a female character instead. Might make her asexual so as to avoid the story ending up as another love story?

Who knows?

I'll let the scenes brew in my head first. drafts of some of scenes are sitting in my PC for use later when I can figure out how to go about the next book.

A hint. It'll pick off where A Warrior's Death left off.

Rewrite Complete!

Finally. I've rewritten the entire book. Sent a copy of the new manuscript to my editor and one to my illustrator. Once the cover is done and the manuscript is edited, I can finally publish the new book up. The existing Jake and Sarah Science Fiction Fantasy Epic will be removed from the stores and the new version with a new title will be put up instead.

I realized that writing a book takes a lot of time, effort and TLC. A rush job turns out a terribly written book. In the end, my first book took way longer than expected but the results are worth it.