Cameron Darrow's Blog, page 20
March 21, 2019
Why Do We Fall, Master Wayne?
So that we can learn to pick ourselves up again.
Last week I fell very far, and very hard. I've spent most of this one regrouping, and looking at what went wrong with the release of Hall of Mirrors, and it ironically ended up with me looking in a mirror. The fault can't lie anywhere else except with me, since I'm the one responsible for how the world finds and perceives my work when it's released.
So, I already have a litany of changes I am and will be making to the work I've already put out (new covers!), and lessons that I will have to apply to Book IV when it comes out. It's taken until today for me not to be completely heartsick at the idea of even thinking about the next book, but that time is passing, and I want to get back to work. To prove myself. I believe in my work, I just have no experience in marketing it, and that is where I clearly have to put more focus the next go-round. I've written three novels now, so I know I can do that. But as I read somewhere, I forget where, 'the easiest part of being an indie author is writing books.' It's everything else around it that's hard.
I have never once entertained the idea of stopping. This is too important to me to do that. It's all I've ever wanted to do. I have to change and adapt, adjust, reflect, figure things out. Fix it. But stop? Never.
I remember an interview with... I want to say R.A. Salvatore (it was a long time ago, forgive me), but in it he said one of the greatest pieces of advice I've ever gotten on the topic of writing: If you want to be a writer, stop. If you can stop, you were never meant to be a writer. If you can't, you have a chance.
Perseverance is as important as talent in writing. I am writing, and I will persevere.
Last week I fell very far, and very hard. I've spent most of this one regrouping, and looking at what went wrong with the release of Hall of Mirrors, and it ironically ended up with me looking in a mirror. The fault can't lie anywhere else except with me, since I'm the one responsible for how the world finds and perceives my work when it's released.
So, I already have a litany of changes I am and will be making to the work I've already put out (new covers!), and lessons that I will have to apply to Book IV when it comes out. It's taken until today for me not to be completely heartsick at the idea of even thinking about the next book, but that time is passing, and I want to get back to work. To prove myself. I believe in my work, I just have no experience in marketing it, and that is where I clearly have to put more focus the next go-round. I've written three novels now, so I know I can do that. But as I read somewhere, I forget where, 'the easiest part of being an indie author is writing books.' It's everything else around it that's hard.
I have never once entertained the idea of stopping. This is too important to me to do that. It's all I've ever wanted to do. I have to change and adapt, adjust, reflect, figure things out. Fix it. But stop? Never.
I remember an interview with... I want to say R.A. Salvatore (it was a long time ago, forgive me), but in it he said one of the greatest pieces of advice I've ever gotten on the topic of writing: If you want to be a writer, stop. If you can stop, you were never meant to be a writer. If you can't, you have a chance.
Perseverance is as important as talent in writing. I am writing, and I will persevere.
March 12, 2019
Why Should I Read From the Ashes of Victory?
If you are just discovering me and my work, welcome! I’m grateful you’re even reading this. If you’ve come this far, I must have piqued your curiosity somehow, so let me attempt to give you a reason to stay and spend your valuable time reading my books.
The From the Ashes of Victory series is about a group of women secretly gifted in magic living in a world without it, in the shadow of the First World War. Despite living in Britain, all of them have lost everything; their families, their homes, in some cases, even themselves. The series follows them as they rebuild their lives and come to understand the extraordinary magical gifts that they wield, above and beyond that of normal witches, called a Manifest.
Magic is secondary to the characters, however, and their deep emotional connections to one another. We follow them as they change and grow, whether as friends or something more. As sister witches, as friends, as lovers, this series centers on relationships, and the positive support they each have for one other as they try to put their tragic pasts behind them in order to create something new, something the world has never seen before.
From the Ashes of Victory is for you if you are interested in…
- A sweet lesbian romance between a fiery Scottish badass and an angelic French nurse
- A cast of characters that is almost entirely women, including every single POV character (Book 3 features only a single named man with any dialogue, and he’s only in one scene)
- Emotional stories about loss, guilt and rebuilding, but always with the silver lining of hope included
- Positivity! Though the themes and setting are heavy, the characters are supportive of one another, not constantly at each others’ throats
- Taking control of your own destiny, even when the rest of the world doesn’t want you to
- Characters imbued with astonishing power, and the struggle to come to grips with it
- Characters that grow and change over the course of the series, and are never static
- Stories about love in all its myriad forms, and the bonds that come from it
- Witches! No broomsticks, but plenty of magic
- Dealing with past trauma in a healthy way, and becoming all the stronger for it
- A historical fantasy set in England following WWI that becomes an alternate universe before your eyes
- And finally, the basic ethos of the entire series: Extraordinary women with extraordinary gifts in extraordinary times
I sincerely hope you enjoy this series, and you stay with me until the end. So far, I have gotten a book out every eight months or so, and aim to keep that pace until the series is finished. I am very happy to have you as a reader, and I would love to hear from you if you would like to make your thoughts known. Mine are scattered throughout this blog, so please feel free to go back and read about my thoughts on writing and the creation of this series. I post every week.
Welcome!
-Cameron Darrow
The From the Ashes of Victory series is about a group of women secretly gifted in magic living in a world without it, in the shadow of the First World War. Despite living in Britain, all of them have lost everything; their families, their homes, in some cases, even themselves. The series follows them as they rebuild their lives and come to understand the extraordinary magical gifts that they wield, above and beyond that of normal witches, called a Manifest.
Magic is secondary to the characters, however, and their deep emotional connections to one another. We follow them as they change and grow, whether as friends or something more. As sister witches, as friends, as lovers, this series centers on relationships, and the positive support they each have for one other as they try to put their tragic pasts behind them in order to create something new, something the world has never seen before.
From the Ashes of Victory is for you if you are interested in…
- A sweet lesbian romance between a fiery Scottish badass and an angelic French nurse
- A cast of characters that is almost entirely women, including every single POV character (Book 3 features only a single named man with any dialogue, and he’s only in one scene)
- Emotional stories about loss, guilt and rebuilding, but always with the silver lining of hope included
- Positivity! Though the themes and setting are heavy, the characters are supportive of one another, not constantly at each others’ throats
- Taking control of your own destiny, even when the rest of the world doesn’t want you to
- Characters imbued with astonishing power, and the struggle to come to grips with it
- Characters that grow and change over the course of the series, and are never static
- Stories about love in all its myriad forms, and the bonds that come from it
- Witches! No broomsticks, but plenty of magic
- Dealing with past trauma in a healthy way, and becoming all the stronger for it
- A historical fantasy set in England following WWI that becomes an alternate universe before your eyes
- And finally, the basic ethos of the entire series: Extraordinary women with extraordinary gifts in extraordinary times
I sincerely hope you enjoy this series, and you stay with me until the end. So far, I have gotten a book out every eight months or so, and aim to keep that pace until the series is finished. I am very happy to have you as a reader, and I would love to hear from you if you would like to make your thoughts known. Mine are scattered throughout this blog, so please feel free to go back and read about my thoughts on writing and the creation of this series. I post every week.
Welcome!
-Cameron Darrow
What is Hall of Mirrors About? (Repost)
Note: This is a re-post for new readers/visibility.
What is Hall of Mirrors about?
In a word: consequences. The dramatic ending of The Fires of Winter didn't happen in a vacuum. A lot of people saw it, and now how do people react to that? Not always how you'd think.
Some are empowered by it, and Longstown gets to host its first suffrage rally. Some are terrified and resentful, and a young witch is sentenced to die. Some are disappointed, and demand answers as to why 200 years of secrecy was blown up in such spectacular fashion.
But it's not only the consequences of what we've seen that haunt our protagonists. What happens when you stop running from horror and you're forced to live with the memories? What happens when the woman you love is finally able to pursue her ambitions, while you're left at home? What happens when your dreams are denied, and the immense power you wield is useless to make them come true?
Hall of Mirrors, like all of my books, is about the characters, their growth, their relationships (romantic and otherwise), their love of and loyalty to one another, and standing up for what they believe is right, consequences be damned.
With a new, fourth (and final!) POV character, new witches, more magic, and our first trip outside of Britain, to witness one of the most consequential moments in 20th century history, Hall of Mirrors is both bigger and smaller than its predecessors, and I hope you'll enjoy it just as much.
What is Hall of Mirrors about?
In a word: consequences. The dramatic ending of The Fires of Winter didn't happen in a vacuum. A lot of people saw it, and now how do people react to that? Not always how you'd think.
Some are empowered by it, and Longstown gets to host its first suffrage rally. Some are terrified and resentful, and a young witch is sentenced to die. Some are disappointed, and demand answers as to why 200 years of secrecy was blown up in such spectacular fashion.
But it's not only the consequences of what we've seen that haunt our protagonists. What happens when you stop running from horror and you're forced to live with the memories? What happens when the woman you love is finally able to pursue her ambitions, while you're left at home? What happens when your dreams are denied, and the immense power you wield is useless to make them come true?
Hall of Mirrors, like all of my books, is about the characters, their growth, their relationships (romantic and otherwise), their love of and loyalty to one another, and standing up for what they believe is right, consequences be damned.
With a new, fourth (and final!) POV character, new witches, more magic, and our first trip outside of Britain, to witness one of the most consequential moments in 20th century history, Hall of Mirrors is both bigger and smaller than its predecessors, and I hope you'll enjoy it just as much.
Hall of Mirrors is Now on Sale!
Hall of Mirrors, book 3 in the From the Ashes of Victory series, is now available on Amazon in both Kindle and paperback formats.
If you're new to the series, Remember, November will be 99 cents in the US store, and 99p in the UK store for the first week of Mirrors' release.
If you're new to the series, Remember, November will be 99 cents in the US store, and 99p in the UK store for the first week of Mirrors' release.
March 10, 2019
Tomorrow's Release Day!
All the hard work is done, and I am currently enjoying the levity brought on by the fact there's nothing left to do except wait. Release day is always stressful, but this being the third one, I think I've learned to not wind myself up into a ball of anxiety. The book is done, it's as good as I could make it, I've put the word out to the best of my ability, and so all I can do is see what happens. It's kind of freeing, actually. I know getting any Book IV work done will be impossible during this week, so I can enjoy the early spring we seem to be having without any guilt. Walk the dog, smell the flowers, that sort of thing. That's the plan, anyway. We'll see once Mirrors goes live how well I can stick to it.
March 7, 2019
Paperbacks are now available!
As of today, after many missteps, learning experiences (grr), and more than a few YouTube tutorials, paperback versions of all three* books in the From the Ashes of Victory series are available through Amazon's print on demand service, and can be found here: https://www.amazon.com/kindle-dbs/ent.... That means you can order as many as you want, and they'll never run out! So please do so! Fires alone will happily keep many a door open. It's like something from IKEA but with words inside!
I know it's print on demand, and anybody can print anything that way, but it still feels really good to have my books in physical form that I can look at on my shelf.
I wanted them out before Mirrors launched, and I am very happy I could meet that goal. So now, everything is ready to go! Just have to wait for Tuesday to get here for the official launch of Hall of Mirrors.
*Yes, all three. Hall of Mirrors released early in paperback, and I don't know why. I certainly didn't intend for it to be that way, but hey, it's only a few days. So if you really want to know what happens, you can find out this weekend. Just don't spoil it for anybody, please.
I know it's print on demand, and anybody can print anything that way, but it still feels really good to have my books in physical form that I can look at on my shelf.
I wanted them out before Mirrors launched, and I am very happy I could meet that goal. So now, everything is ready to go! Just have to wait for Tuesday to get here for the official launch of Hall of Mirrors.
*Yes, all three. Hall of Mirrors released early in paperback, and I don't know why. I certainly didn't intend for it to be that way, but hey, it's only a few days. So if you really want to know what happens, you can find out this weekend. Just don't spoil it for anybody, please.
March 4, 2019
One Week Out
And Hall of Mirrors is officially finished. The final version has been submitted, and is sitting on an Amazon server somewhere, ready to go. Feels good!
A few more tweaks to the paperback version, and that will be ready for print.
So much happening all at once, but it's very hurry up and wait. Once the submission deadline passes, there's nothing to do but fret.
If you haven't read the first two, or have only read one, now's your chance to get caught up!
A few more tweaks to the paperback version, and that will be ready for print.
So much happening all at once, but it's very hurry up and wait. Once the submission deadline passes, there's nothing to do but fret.
If you haven't read the first two, or have only read one, now's your chance to get caught up!
March 1, 2019
12 Hours Later
Feeling much more positive! Took that walk, had a good writing day, about to head to bed, but didn't want to leave that last post like that. I'll keep it up for posterity, but I was at a particularly low point at my usual blog posting time this week.
Hall of Mirrors is undergoing spit and polish, trying to stamp out typos and formatting errors. You'd be surprised how many double spaces get picked up just by changing to full screen and back. Stuff like that.
The cover, as you can see, is done. I changed Remember, November's slightly to fit in with its successors better, and all three look pretty slick stacked together when you click on the series page on Amazon.
Book IV is coming along already, well ahead of where I was at this point in the release cycle for the other books, so that feels good, too.
Just a small update right now. Hope you all have a good weekend!
Hall of Mirrors is undergoing spit and polish, trying to stamp out typos and formatting errors. You'd be surprised how many double spaces get picked up just by changing to full screen and back. Stuff like that.
The cover, as you can see, is done. I changed Remember, November's slightly to fit in with its successors better, and all three look pretty slick stacked together when you click on the series page on Amazon.
Book IV is coming along already, well ahead of where I was at this point in the release cycle for the other books, so that feels good, too.
Just a small update right now. Hope you all have a good weekend!
February 28, 2019
T-Minus 12 Days
It's launch month for Hall of Mirrors, 12 days from release, and I have no idea what to expect. I'm proud of it, and excited to share, but also bracing to be crushed. This last week has been especially hard on me, and it gets harder and harder to stay positive. I want to be. I'm proud of my work, I'm proud of the job I've done in creating these characters and the world they live in.
I'm happy with how Mirrors came out (yes, it's done, just undergoing final polishing ATM), but if it lands with the same wet thud that the first two books did, I don't know how I'm going to feel. I'm not asking for pity, or even understanding, I'm just putting on the record how I feel at this point, to create a log of how an indie author's feelings ebb and flow over the course of the writing and publishing process. Just a few weeks ago I was ecstatic almost beyond words at how well Book IV was going, and now I'm closer to 'I like whisky more than I really should.' I've always been plagued by feelings of self-doubt and worse, and this week in particular just happens to fall under 'worse.'
I will bounce back, though. The sun will come out, there will be light in the dark. But days like today are why I dedicate my books the way I do. Because I know there are others out there who feel like I do right now, and they should know, as I have to remember, that things get better. That part of Victoria's journey is my journey as well, and she, nor I, are alone in taking it. No-one is.
Even as I write this, the sun is coming out. So this is where I'm going to leave you. I'm going to go outside, play with the dog. Go find the plum blossoms and have a think.
I'll be back.
I'm happy with how Mirrors came out (yes, it's done, just undergoing final polishing ATM), but if it lands with the same wet thud that the first two books did, I don't know how I'm going to feel. I'm not asking for pity, or even understanding, I'm just putting on the record how I feel at this point, to create a log of how an indie author's feelings ebb and flow over the course of the writing and publishing process. Just a few weeks ago I was ecstatic almost beyond words at how well Book IV was going, and now I'm closer to 'I like whisky more than I really should.' I've always been plagued by feelings of self-doubt and worse, and this week in particular just happens to fall under 'worse.'
I will bounce back, though. The sun will come out, there will be light in the dark. But days like today are why I dedicate my books the way I do. Because I know there are others out there who feel like I do right now, and they should know, as I have to remember, that things get better. That part of Victoria's journey is my journey as well, and she, nor I, are alone in taking it. No-one is.
Even as I write this, the sun is coming out. So this is where I'm going to leave you. I'm going to go outside, play with the dog. Go find the plum blossoms and have a think.
I'll be back.
February 21, 2019
Chasing the Dragon
After the incredible high of the work I got done on Book iV a few weeks ago, I'm in the doldrums that always follows. It's inevitable, of course, I'd never experienced such intense creativity before. To be able to sustain it would be impossible. And it's not something you can just summon like a familiar, either. 'Be creative now!' Bam! Book finished. If it were that easy, it would decimate the alcohol industry.
So I know to at least try not to be discouraged when the ideas don't come when I want them to. After writing three novels, you have to allow yourself to take a mulligan now and then, and go do something else to keep from beating yourself up too much. I used to be much worse about it, but it didn't actually help me be any more productive. You have to get back in the saddle afterward, though. Sit down and bash out the words, knowing you can fix them later.
But that feeling of having them all come out right the first time, fully formed, is a goal worth chasing down, even if you only rarely catch it. It's rewarding, and reminds you that it can happen, you just have to sit down and give it the chance. Hitting your word count every day is the concrete goal, but when you do it with good words, it makes you want to do it again and again. Soon enough, you have a novel.
All three books (and what I have of the fourth so far), have developed differently, starting from different places in the story, but they are all a product of sitting down and doing the work, keeping the wheat and dumping the chaff. Or turning some of the chaff into wheat. I think I've lost the metaphor a bit, but you get what I'm saying.
Thank you for coming with me this far, both in this post and this series. There's more to come.
So I know to at least try not to be discouraged when the ideas don't come when I want them to. After writing three novels, you have to allow yourself to take a mulligan now and then, and go do something else to keep from beating yourself up too much. I used to be much worse about it, but it didn't actually help me be any more productive. You have to get back in the saddle afterward, though. Sit down and bash out the words, knowing you can fix them later.
But that feeling of having them all come out right the first time, fully formed, is a goal worth chasing down, even if you only rarely catch it. It's rewarding, and reminds you that it can happen, you just have to sit down and give it the chance. Hitting your word count every day is the concrete goal, but when you do it with good words, it makes you want to do it again and again. Soon enough, you have a novel.
All three books (and what I have of the fourth so far), have developed differently, starting from different places in the story, but they are all a product of sitting down and doing the work, keeping the wheat and dumping the chaff. Or turning some of the chaff into wheat. I think I've lost the metaphor a bit, but you get what I'm saying.
...
If you've read this far, can I ask a question? What would you like to know, or not know, about Hall of Mirrors? Last week's post had literally zero views other than my own, and I don't know how I should feel about it. Avoiding spoilers or utter disinterest are both possible, and my inner voice keeps taunting me with the latter. I would appreciate some feedback from you, so I have some idea what to say about it, other than the fact it's coming.Thank you for coming with me this far, both in this post and this series. There's more to come.
