Black Powder Brigade: 40,000 Word Update

Well, Black Powder Brigade has finally reached 40,000 words. Woo! The 20,000 word update was March 25th, and I hit 40,000 words yesterday. So it took me 19 days to write 20,000 words, which is about 1,052 words per day. Not too shabby! However, I’ll attribute part of that daily word count average to the fact that I wrote a little over 4,500 words Saturday; my second-largest daily word count ever. So, yeah, I’m pretty pumped about that! Now, onto the book:

Firstly, I’ve dropped the total word count from 120,000 words to 100,000 words. Then I dropped it down to 70,000 words. I know, I know, what a wuss, right? Well I’ve discovered that I’m not a “long-distance” writer.  I guess I just run out of steam after a while (usually I start to feel it around the mid 30,000 word point, but I press on). But, at the current point of Black Powder Brigade, I’m fairly certain I’ll be able to get it to 70,000. Plus, I’m almost positive the second draft will be longer. I’m still essentially telling myself the story (perhaps a topic for another blog post), so I’m sure I’m leaving out all kinds of extra details that really suck the reader into the world. I’m estimating the second draft to be closer to 80,000 words, maybe 85,000. But, we’ll see.

Secondly, the cover art for this book should be awesome. I found an artist who does darker comic-book/graphic novel art, and he said he can draw me something in black and white for $50. If what I have envisioned is anything close to what the cover actually ends up looking like, I’m sure you’ll all love it. He’s going to draw up some thumbnails for me to take a look at, which will help even more.

And, thirdly, I don’t have an excerpt for you this time. However, this book is coming along really well. I really can’t wait to get this draft finished and polished for the beta readers. I think it’ll be an enjoyable and thrilling read.

In other news: I was taken on by a website/magazine/publisher called Eat Your Serial! I’ll be a columnist and  contributing writer! I’ll have a monthly column in which I compare various aspects of writing to other parts of life/interests. For example, Self-Publishing: The Punk Rock of the Publishing Industry, and then I’ll contribute to some of the daily posts. So I can’t wait to get started.

My next Black Powder Brigade update will hopefully be either a character interview or another word update at my target, 70,000 words. So be ready for those!

Black Powder Brigade: Back Cover

I did some toying with the back-cover description of Black Powder Brigade, and I would love some feedback. I’m not entirely pleased with it yet, but I think I definitely have a solid base to work with. I think I need to work on the flow of it. It feels a bit choppy to me.

Let me know what you think!

 

THE HUNT FOR A MADMAN BEGINS…

The New World, 1773 – A group of elite soldiers known as the Black Powder Brigade patrol the world in secret, searching for strange and deadly creatures to ensure the natural order is safe. Some of these creatures evolved naturally, while others are created and bred.

Victoria Sorrel, operating under the lie that she is a boy, joins these men in their hunt for unusual creatures in hopes that it will satisfy her hunger for adventure. But, when a new creature referred to as the Bruta begins terrorizing the New World, things take a dark turn for Victoria and the Black Powder Brigade. Colonists come up missing, an unusual number of trade ships start to arrive at Boston Harbor, and the madman Isaac Carter is freed from prison.

The colonies become overwhelmed with monsters, murder, and betrayal.

The New World hangs in the balance, and it’s up to Victoria, the Black Powder Brigade, and some newly made friends to pry it from the clutches of evil.

Black Powder Brigade: Excerpt #2

Here’s another short excerpt from my WIP, Black Powder Brigade. Enjoy!

“What have you done?” one of the British soldiers asked. He shoved past Victoria and looked at the wreckage. “You’re all under arrest.”

“We didn’t do this,” John said, shoving away one of the guards.

“Really? You’re all standing around here and you say you didn’t do it?”

Victoria looked at John and Samuel, who were looking at her. She nodded and grabbed the closest guard. Victoria jammed her foot into the back of the guard’s knee and then shoved him down. She then drew her sword and knocked away a bayonet. John and Samuel shoved past two other guards and John punched one in the stomach, and then smashed his elbow onto the back of his head.

“Come on,” Victoria said. She slashed another guard across the chest and then kicked the front of his knee, radiating a sharp pop and snap as the soldier’s knee bent backward. The guard cried out and fell to the ground, his screams echoing as Victoria, John, and Samuel dashed down an alley.

“What about Katya,” Samuel said.

“She’s tough,” Victoria replied. She jumped over a large crate and dodged a drunken man leaning against the building. “I’m sure she’ll be all right.”

A small group of British Soldiers blocked the end of the alley, muskets pointed at Victoria and the others.

“But what about us?” Samuel asked. Victoria pulled John and Samuel behind a stack of crates just as the soldier’s fired. The musket balls whizzed by, and Victoria charged out toward them as they reloaded. She ducked and jabbed her sword into a soldier’s stomach. The soldier groaned and stepped back, causing the blade to slide out of his gut. Victoria pushed away a musket, but then one of the soldier jammed the butt of his rifle into her side. Victoria stumbled but planted a hand on the side of a building. She grabbed onto the barrel of a Redcoat’s rifle and shoved him backward, the length of the gun giving her enough leverage to swing him around into the building.

“Let’s go,” John shouted. He shoved another soldier to the ground, and Victoria and Samuel followed him down the street. They took a sharp right turn, and then another left down a side street. Victoria pushed past a small group of colonists, knocking one to the ground, and took another right turn into an alley, but came to a sudden halt.

Another group of Redcoats stood in front of them, muskets ready.

“Hello, Vic,” the young man at the front of the group said.

Victoria grit her teeth. “Let us pass, Joshua. We’ve done nothing wrong.”

Joshua smiled and leaned his musket against the side of a building. “I’ve learned a lot since I joined the British,” he said. He took off his crimson jacket and handed it to the soldier to his left. Joshua raised his fists in front of his face. “You want to get by, then we fight man to man. That is… assuming you’re actually man enough for it.”

Victoria thought back to what little Katya had taught her about boxing. “Very well,” she said, raising her hands. “Let’s just hope I don’t surprise you… little brother.”

Self-Publishing: The Punk Rock of the Publishing Industry

Image credit cellar_door_films via WANACommons

The beast known as self-publishing is both simple and complicated. It’s simple because, well, writing is simple… and complicated. Damn, this could get confusing. All right, so it’s like this:

When punk rock first began, it seemed to be (at least from my knowledge of it) about jumping around on stage, yelling and screaming, wailing on your guitar and drums to make a lot of noise and make everyone jump around. It seemed to be about not conforming, doing what you want, and how you want to do it. Sure, the bands may try to do cheap recordings in their garages and sell them, and they won’t be perfect; but it’s all part of growing, and it’s all part of building an audience.

This isn’t too different from a beginning self-publishing author. The author pounds on his or her keyboard, jumps around and screams on the internet, and doesn’t conform to what the big publishers want. They’re in control, they know how they want to publish and how they want their books to be, and they want to do it their way. It might be rough, but it’s something. It’s progress. It’s learning.

But then, as punk rock got more popular, it began to grow and refine. More people got into it, so more people bought it and supported it. Thus, the band makes more and can afford to put out better quality recordings. Plus, they’re better as musicians, so they just sound better. Now they’re getting big. Now they’re achieving their dreams.

Now back to the self-published author: He or she has a few books out and is starting to build their own audience. They offer some free fiction on their blog, and people are taking notice. More people are buying their books, and the author can afford more services. They can afford professional editing and better cover designs. They are growing in their skill as a businessman or businesswoman, and they are getting better at their craft. They’re writing better, they’re publishing better, and they are better. They’re writing full time now. They’re achieving their dreams.

Self-publishing is not the easy way out. It’s a learning process and it’s growing. It’s about hard work, dedication, and getting yourself out there for everyone to see. Oh, it’s also more hard work. And then even more hard work. Few people can say it as well as Chuck Wendig:

“Write as much as you can.
As fast as you can.
Finish your shit.
Hit your deadlines.
Try very hard not to suck.”

And that’s all there is to it.

Print Vs. Audio Books — Is Comprehension A Factor?

Photo Credit cellar_door_films via WANACommons

For some time now there has been debate about whether listening to an audio book is the same as physically reading a book. Personally, as long as the book is getting into your head I’m glad you’re doing it. There’s no time to fuss about it when aliteracy is becoming more common.

My question is does the average person comprehend a print book better than an audio book? Sure, some people may have a hard time comprehending what they physically read, so they may turn to audio books as an alternative, and that is fantastic. I’m happy that those who struggle with literacy have are still able to enjoy the thrills of literature. But is it easy to comprehend and audio book?

I’ve never listened to an audio book, and I ask this questions because I feel that if I tried to, I would listen to it while performing other activities. Perhaps while running, or while driving, both of which seem like fairly prime times to listen. But, what if while focusing on driving, or avoiding the jerk who cut you off, or almost getting hit by a car, you find that you missed an important section of the book, but don’t realize it right away. Before you know it you may have missed out on a good portion of a chapter. Sure you can lose focus while reading a print book, but I feel that most people are in a much more controlled environment then and have a smaller chance of missing out on something.

I will note that, based on what I’ve seen of Goodreads reading updates, people who listen to audio books seem to finish books faster than those who do not, depending on the person, of course.

I’ve been considering trying out an audio book, and have also considered possibly trying to release one of my own books in this format. I know Createspace (Amazon) also has the option to publish CDs and I think MP3s as well, so it may be a viable option in the age of self-publishing.

Do you listen to audio books? Do you find it difficult to comprehend what you hear while performing others tasks? Do you prefer physically reading or listening to an audio book?

Picture a Picture of your Character — Does it Help?

Over the past few weeks I’ve noticed some authors I follow on Facebook posting photos of people who look like characters from their novel(s). This is an interesting concept in that it can allow the readers to really visualize what the characters in a book looks like, especially a book that hasn’t been made into a movie, and may not be photographed on the cover.  But does this really have a significant benefit? Will posting a photo of someone who looks like a character in your book boost sales? Will it boost reader response? Maybe.

Now, I’m not saying it’s potentially bad. Maybe it can help the writer to write a better description of a character if they actually have a person to base it off of. I guess I’m just more curious than anything else. I’ve only tried on one occasion to find a person who looks like Victoria–also known as Vic–from my flintlock fantasy WIP, Black Powder Brigade. I searched on Pinterest and only found that it’s quite difficult to find a picture of a younger girl (about 15 or 16) with short hair who sort of looks like a boy. All I found were pictures of “trendy” shorter hair styles for women. And I’m a bit hesitant to search Google Images out of fear that some less-than-pleasant results bubble to the top, and then I have to gouge my eyes out and make my wife do all my typing for me. And I don’t think either of us would enjoy that. But perhaps I’ll have better luck finding someone who looks like one of the other characters from Black Powder Brigade. It can’t hurt to try.

Have you found a person who looks like a character from a work of yours? Do you enjoy seeing people who look like your favorite characters? Do you think it has a benefit?

Some Tips On Tags

For my fiction workshop class I submitted a short story entitled “Bastogne.” As I’m sure you may be able to infer from the title, the story takes place in Bastogne during World War II. It’s about two American soldiers. It’s about friends. And it’s about loss, regret, and guilt. The class really enjoyed it, which was nice to hear. They had a few minor suggestions, most of which I agreed with. However, one of them I didn’t. The class suggested that I use an exclamation point when people are screaming/yelling etc. But that’s now how I write. I guess it’s more of a stylistic choice, but I think it helps to make the read stronger.

When I write, I always include the tag shouted, yelled, screamed, roared, or a few select others, but I always end the quote with a comma, never an exclamation point. I like to let the context of the situation make the reader “feel” the scream. If I just put an exclamation point at the end then it just tells the reader that someone is yelling. Now, I suppose using the tag “yelled” or “screamed” does the same. But I guess it’s just different for me.

However, some people are extremists when it comes to tags. I’ve heard of writers who will only use “said” with their dialogue tag no matter what. They say that “said” is so common that most readers see it sort of like a period and it helps makes things smoother. I agree with this to a certain degree, but I think it depends on the situation in the story. But I do have a very limited selection of words I will use.

Words I use in dialogue tags:

• Said
• Replied
• Whispered
• Asked
• Shouted
• Yelled
• Screamed
• Roared
• Lied (Although this one I almost never use)

Words I refuse to use in dialogue tags

• Anything ending in -ly
  • “he said fervently”
  • “She said softly/quietly”
• Any obnoxious synonyms for yelled
  • Exclaimed
  • Exaggerated
  • Belted
• Questioned
• Interrogated

I’m sure you get the point. Having clean dialogue tags makes things that much smoother for the reader. Similar with adverbs. As Stephen King says, “The road to Hell is paved with adverbs.” I absolutely (Irony, ha!) refuse to use them anymore. I’d much rather show how someone is is quietly walking than just saying he or she is quietly walking. For example: “He crept across the courtyard.” Or “She walked with silent steps.” The latter example may seem a little more drawn out, but I think it adds a lot to the action.

Do you use exclamation points? What dialogue tags do you use? Which ones do you prefer to read? Do you have any examples of good or bad uses of dialogue tags?