Greg Hamerton's Blog, page 2

The best epic fantasy deal: it’s free!

For today and tomorrow only, The Riddler’s Gift is free on Amazon Kindle ( US | UK ). Tell your friends! It’s a great way to start the epic fantasy series that SFBOOK called “Sheer magic”.

A shadow steals across Eyri. One by one, the Lightgifters are snuffed out. When darkness strikes her family, Tabitha receives a dangerous legacy. Soon the Riddler walks beside her, but is he on her side?

The more she searches for answers, the further into treachery she is led. The more she tries to flee, the harder she is hunted. And the more she sings the ancient Lifesong, the more the world begins to change.

Can she grasp her gift before the darkness captures the last of the light?

“In a darkening realm, which is better: the power to save your love, or to save your love from power?”

The Riddler’s Gift is full-length epic fantasy, over 650 pages in print: get it for free today and tomorrow only on Amazon.com or Amazon.co.uk

Award-winning fantasy, suspense, horror and more on sale today

Eight award winners in the 2012 eFestival of Words “Best of the Independent eBook Awards” have reduced the prices of their award-winning novels to 99 cents for August 27 and 28th!

Whether you like to read mysteries, romance, horror, young adult, women’s fiction, or fantasy, this group has it. Are you a writer yourself? Do you want to learn all about digitally publishing your next masterpiece? They’ve got you covered there too.

——————– Award Winners ——————–

Best Mystery/Suspense: Dead is the New Black by Christine DeMaio-Rice

Best Non-Fiction: DIY/Self-Help: Let’s Get Digital by David Gaughran

Best Horror: 61 A.D. by David McAfee

Best Romance: Deadly Obsession by Kristine Cayne

Best Young Adult: The Book of Lost Souls by Michelle Muto

Best Fantasy and Best Novel: The Black God’s War by Moses Siregar III

Best Chick Lit/Women’s Lit: Carpe Bead’em by Tonya Kappes

Award for Best Twist: The Survival of Thomas Ford by John A.A. Logan

———————————————————————-

Get all eight award-winning ebooks for $8 at  http://amzn.to/MO7qBY

Happy reading!

Scott F. Gray on Fantasy Collaboration

Scott Fitzgerald Gray has been flogging his imagination professionally since deciding he wanted to be a writer and abandoning any hope of a real career in about the fourth grade. That was the year that speculative fiction and fantasy kindled his voracious appetite for literary escapism and a love of roleplaying gaming that still drives his questionable creativity. In addition to his fantasy and speculative fiction writing, Scott has dabbled in feature film and television, was a finalist for the Jim Burt Screenwriting Prize from the Writers’ Guild of Canada, and currently consults and story edits on projects ranging from overly obscure indie-Canadian fare to Neill Blomkamp’s somewhat less-obscure “District 9” and the upcoming “Elysium.”

A Prayer for Dead Kings and Other Tales is the current centerpiece for the shared world mentioned in this post (the Endlands). Scott’s latest book is We Can Be Heroes.

More info on Scott and his work (some of it even occasionally truthful) can be found by reading between the lines at insaneangel.com.

Writing has a reputation as a singular kind of pursuit. We writers are all supposed to be lonely, broken figures locked in our garret workspaces, blindly pursuing our personal muse while our families fret and pace in the drawing room downstairs. And while there’s a part of me that would love to live the life of an 18th-century literary cliche, I don’t fit that mold overly well. Because my creative process and my history of making a kind of living as a writer has been largely shaped around the idea of collaboration.

My writing career started out in Canadian film, where I worked in screenwriting for a number of years, made a pretty good living, and ultimately quit because none of the projects I actually cared about were getting made. But when you work as a screenwriter, you pretty quickly embrace the idea that screenwriting is a highly collaborative process. At its worst, screenwriting is the experience of having your ideas beaten down and second-guessed by people who can’t do what you do (but that’s a topic for a different post, probably). But at its best — which I’ve been fortunate enough to see a fair bit of — screenwriting is about a shared creative vision. It’s about making your own ideas stronger and sharper by the process of having other people add to them. It’s about recognizing specific limitations and having to focus the work to adapt to them. It’s about hearing other people’s ideas and riffing off those ideas to come up with ideas you never would have thought of on your own.

A lot of years later, I spend a lot of my time working in collaboration with a ton of other people as a freelance editor and occasional designer for the Dungeons & Dragons game. I write fantasy and speculative fiction, most of which takes place in a shared world of my own creation (the Endlands). There’s a lot to be said for the single-author worlds that all epic-fantasy fans are familiar with, from Middle Earth to Westeros to the lands of the Wheel of Time. But for me, the richness of some of the most memorable fantasy worlds owes itself to the collaborative process by which those worlds were built. The Forgotten Realms, Dragonlance, and Eberron are shared worlds that most fantasy fans with a gaming background know of. Other literary examples include “Thieves’ World” and C.J. Cherryh’s “Merovingen Nights” books. And don’t forget what’s probably the grandfather of shared-world fantasy, the Hyborian Age — created by Robert E. Howard but vastly expanded upon by DeCamp and Carter, Roy Thomas, Kurt Busiek and Tim Truman, and many more.

For those who haven’t worked in a shared-world creative milieu, I think it’s easy to assume that it must be hard for a writer to feel good about having to give up some of the autonomy that creativity so often demands. But here’s a lame analogy. I know pretty much nothing about music, but the process of writing in a collaborative environment has always struck me as probably being something like what it feels like to play in a really great band. You as an individual might be great at what you do, but being able to riff off of the ideas and explorations of other people can take what you do to a whole new level. And in this lame analogy, the writer who absolutely can’t stand to have his or her work and ideas subjected to scrutiny, to suggestion, to the confines of history and culture that didn’t spring fully formed from his or her own mind is kind of like the lead guitarist who needs to constantly shred without worrying about what the rest of the band is doing. Or what song is even being played.

For me, there’s something special about worlds crafted through collaboration, because there’s something special about the process of collaboration — and of how that process sharpens, rather than dulls, individual creativity. RPG designers and shared-world authors work through a similar kind of process. All of those same things that are the best parts of screenwriting are wrapped up in the shared-world creative exchange that is game design and tie-in fiction — making your own ideas stronger and sharper, focusing in response to limitations, riffing off of other peoples’ creativity. In a screenwriting context, one has to balance the full scope of the imagination against writing within a production budget or having to make use of specific locations because those are the only locations available. In a shared-world writing, you balance all the things you could possibly do with existing canon and history — with the rules of the world as they’ve been laid down by the writers and designers who came before you.

There’s a great satisfaction in being the creator of pure ideas, for sure. But for me, there’s a different kind of equally great satisfaction that comes from being part of a process of ideas and creativity that’s greater than what I could accomplish on my own. And despite having the freedom as a writer and indie publisher to do whatever the hell I want with no input from or control by anyone else, I will happily continue to collaborate until the day I die.

 

Fantasy Book Review: The Kinshield Legacy

If you’re looking for good entertainment that doesn’t expect you to invest heavily in setting up the fantasy world and conflict, something you can just pick up anytime and enjoy, then this is ideal.

It’s fast-paced heroic fantasy for the commuter hour, easy to digest with little to chew over, but that makes it delightfully unpretentious. Like the hero, Kinshield, it comes at you strong and fast, bashes your head and clangs your sword, engages you in a fight, then extends a generous hand to pick you up again. I had great fun!

What it lacks in grandeur it makes up for in cheerful indulgence in fantasy traditions: kings, prophesies, enchanted swords, ruffian knights, evil wizards and not-at-all-helpless damsels in distress. The writing is professional, action driven, with scheming and backstabbing aplenty.

The occasionaly intensely dark moments, although highly effective to characterise the villain, were disturbing and push the reading towards adult territory; most of the story is a tongue-in-cheek quest with a game-play feel.

Kinshield’s personal journey, his moments of compassion and his slowly revealed past offer a glimpse of May’s ability to empower her stories with more than swordplay. A writer to watch!

Behind the words: the metaphysics of The Tale of the Lifesong

After reading and reviewing both books in my epic fantasy series, David Wagner threw some interesting challenges my way. Continue the mini-series as we delve into the world behind the words (previous posts dealt with themes and characters). Required reading for this assignment: The Riddler's Gift and Second Sight. Deeper into the Tale of the Lifesong we go!

DW:  In both of your novels, you certainly demonstrate that you have a solid grasp on, and deep understanding of, many (what could be called) "Biblical" concepts – far more so than many "Christian" authors I know of/have read.

I don't believe it is necessary to study religion to find understanding; all you need is within yourself. If I display a grasp of 'Biblical' concepts that is coincidental as I don't claim any knowledge of the contents of your Bible, which I tried to read but found the writing style obscured my inner sight. All I have done is to reflect on the world I see through the eyes of my soul.  I have allowed ideas to come through me rather than from me.

DW: One of my favorites was the idea of the wildfire revealing who you are on the inside, transforming you so that your inward nature is directly reflected by your outward appearance. You addressed this in part in your web post "The Lifesong and the Search for Truth".

I suspect that would be a horror for most people, as would the presence of a telepath nearby. I doubt any of us would look very beautiful with our inner nature and thoughts on display. But a beautiful soul is something worth striving for, isn't it? The state of our soul is our own special secret creation. That makes life a journey, rather than an achievement.

I am wary of people who claim to have 'found' the way to enlightenment. People are clever enough to puzzle out their own path. But we can all do with some inspiration to get us moving in the right direction, so if you are a singer, sing! If you are a writer: write!

DW: Please know that I absolutely am not going to try to engage you in a religious discussion, and will by no means attempt to foist my own set of beliefs upon you… I was only curious if your Atheism has been from your youth, or do you come from a religious background, which you subsequently left? I'm only curious because of your remarkable grasp on many underlying concepts that I feel have been obfuscated/hidden and are sorely needed among those that claim to follow Christ.

I appreciate your considerate approach. You are the kind of Christian I get on very well with. My wife is Roman Catholic, my best friend at school became a pastor; both understand religion is a personal path. To me, the sensation of spirit doesn't imply worship is appropriate. I choose to walk alone. And my atheism is definitely not spelled with a capital A; I don't use it to classify or limit myself.

I have been an atheist since about thirteen, when I worked out for myself that going to church wasn't right and proper for me, it was a one-sided dialogue and simply traditional. Before that I wasn't Christian, I was too young to know what Christian was. After that, I was the kid at school who refused to sing the hymns. I guess I've finally found a way to change the words

In the Tale of the Lifesong, I present a world that has entranced my inner eye. That you find deep concepts in it is due to the fact that you are able to see them in any world, I don't believe it's due to any special ability on my behalf of being able to express them, but thanks for the compliment.

I aim to be 'true' in my telling of the story; I am guided by my sense of 'off-key' notes, which I try to reshape into a harmony. I believe the less we explain in our stories and the more that it is up to the interpretation of the reader, the more powerful those interpretations can become because they are moments of discovered truth, entirely personal and (hopefully) therefore genuinely enlightening, rather than just dazzling displays of intellectual wizardry.

In the Lifesong, I seek to understand the magic I sense whispering under the surface of life, the essence of a beautiful song. That some people enjoy sharing my journey of discovery is a bonus. Maybe we are not that different, after all.

Behind the words: Developing the characters of the Tale of the Lifesong

After reading and reviewing both books in my epic fantasy series, David Wagner threw some interesting challenges my way. Continue the mini-series as we delve into the world behind the words (the previous post was on themes). Required reading for this assignment: The Riddler's Gift and Second Sight. Deeper into the Tale of the Lifesong we go!

DW:  Ametheus is a terrific character, and it is probably impossible to recall exactly how he evolved in your mind, while you were developing him, but I'd love to know how you came up with the three facets, and assigning one to focus on the past, one the present and the third on the future. I'd love to know if you felt that type of dichotomy (trichotomy?) was merely a byproduct of pure chaos, or at its heart.

This trichotomy is at the heart of existence. We were, we are, we will be. It's easy to understand Ametheus because we have may have some similar qualities ourselves: the part that lives in the past, holds grudges and is easy to anger, the part that lives in the future and maybe overestimates the amazing talents we have yet to reveal, and the humble part that lives in the Now and is maybe not quite what we want to be.

I really don't develop these characters in the sense you are thinking of. I sink deeper into them. I try to understand who they are, and reveal it, rather than saying to myself 'here's Mr X, he's going to be a placeholder representing un-love, despair and wrath'. I get flashes of inspiration, then work to understand the gift of vision I have been given.

DW:  Why did you decide to bring back Kirjath for Second Sight? He was such a terrific villain in the first volume, was it just hard to let him go? Ametheus doesn't really factor in until they leave Oldenworld — did you feel the beginning of the book lacked enough tension without a true villain?

No, I closed my eyes, and there I was, floating above the grave thinking 'how dare they bury me?' And so I ventured forth, and tried to survive, with my failing essence, and my bitter need. You cannot kill me, you cretins.

DW:  Would King Mellar have gone mad anyway if Kirjath's spirit had not 'possessed' him?

Yes, it comes from taking away the crutch he has used all his adult life. If you become familiar with projecting stability and order through such a powerful talisman, when it is removed from you the contrast would surely induce paranoia and madness. It is the fatal flaw of relying on Order (or becoming too powerful or famous — you never want to give it up). But without Kirjath, Mellar's madness would not be so very dangerous. We'll see how that plays out in a new tale of the Lifesong, perhaps?

DW:  Ashley's "power" seems to be presented in a much more subtle way than Tabitha's, yet it seemed (to me, anyway) to be every bit as unique/powerful. Did you plan on making Ashley a new Wizard from the outset, or was that a happy development along the way?

You might remember a slip of the tongue by the Riddler very early on that might begin the change in Eyri. The Darkmaster, Ashley, and Tabitha are touched by the flux. Take it from there… I didn't intend for them to become wizards, but someone else did.

DW: Loved what you did with Ashley and Sassraline. It was fascinating to watch you deal with the issues of lying in order to save one's skin, using flattery as a tool of manipulation, and also the nature of worship to begin with.

Flattering dragons is what you're supposed to do, according to legend. The spin here is that he really has to make it believable, because he's communicating with thoughts not words, so he can't really lie, he has to find a truth that creates the desired effect.

DW: Ashley's ability to project ideas/illusions into the minds of others, did you know he'd be able to do that from the outset (and saved that for the right time) or did that present itself as you wrote the scene of Sassraline's humbling?

Sit in a cave with a hungry dragon long enough and you'll come up with a solution. Or get eaten. You have to realize I'm sitting there with him, for days, and the only way I can escape from that scene is to escape from that scene. That's where I find the genuine plot, the path with heart. I know he's in the cave (because I've seen it); I don't know how he escapes (because I'm blinded to this part of the story) – so I have to work it out. I usually get flashes of vision, not understanding or plot or motivations. I'm constantly trying to work out 'how do I get there, from here'?

Behind the words: Plot and Themes in the Tale of the Lifesong

After reading and reviewing both books in my epic fantasy series, David Wagner threw some interesting challenges my way. Join us as we delve into the world behind the words. Required reading for this assignment: The Riddler's Gift and Second Sight. Deeper into the Tale of the Lifesong we go!

DW: Did you have the basic arc for the whole tale (From Riddler's through Second Sight) in mind from the outset, or did you finish Riddler's Gift first, and then regroup and wonder where you could go from there, for a second book?

Holding onto a master plan when the story is about developing wizards?

This is impossible, because they have the power to change things as they develop, in ways you cannot plan. I wanted to follow their journey, rather than dictate it, and so I had to give them freedom.

If I shoe-horned them into a pre-defined pattern, what would I learn? The only way to retain the integrity of the story was to imagine myself in their position, given their powers, and see what they would do.

So the plot is entirely organic.

This makes my writing process very slow. My coffee generally goes cold. After some time, I am suddenly blind-sided by vision. Occasionally, for fun, I'd finish a chapter and then Zarost would propose 'How can it possibly get harder? What's the worst thing that could happen?' Then I'd write that bit, find myself even deeper and ask 'how the hell do we get out of here?' That could take a few days to solve, while Zarost chuckled to himself. Sometimes, I followed my curiosity, as in 'What's happening with Ashley?' If I was really lucky, I'd hear voices, and take dictation – those scenes came out with special resonance and explosive speed.

It got progressively harder to write, until by the fourth movement of Second Sight, I was really beginning to understand Ametheus and was searching for a way to find peace through annihilation. For the record, I didn't do anything to the chicken, but I enjoy peri-peri.

DW: On the over-arching theme of Chaos vs Order. Did you start with that theme and contemplate which genre would make sense, as far as how best to express your thoughts on it? Or did you decide to write a fantasy novel, and the theme evolved out of the process of fleshing out the characters and the world?

The first question presumes that I planned to express a certain theme. I didn't; I witnessed it.

You might say it grew out of the world as I explored it, although the three axis magic system was an early concept that comes from being fascinated with three-dimensional mathematics. So Dark and Light were pitted against each other on the first axis in the simplified environment of Eyri, and Chaos and Order were natural adversaries on the third axis in Oldenworld.

I wanted to express the idea of different organizations of the same power, and the freedom of escaping the confines of indoctrination along a certain axis. So far, the second axis is largely unexplored (that of Matter/Energy), and the Lifesong defies classification within the science of the times. But these were very far in the background of my thoughts as I wrote the Lifesong series.

You will find many themes in the Lifesong, depending on what you bring to it as a reader, precisely because I wrote it without the intention to prove a point or present a particular view. I aim for revelation (for myself) rather than trying to disguise some kind of religion (for others).

The inspiring video you posted of Thijme Termaat (I Paint) expresses this perfectly.

You might be able to find themes in his collection. Likewise, the Lifesong fantasy series is a collection of mental paintings. I express what comes through me. The theme is not intended, it is experienced.

So although things like theme, subtext, context and conceptual analysis might make sense in an English literature class, it makes no sense to me as a writer. I deliberately walked a different path for the Lifesong. It has no literary aspirations. It means only what it means to you. It is a creation, rather than a construction.

My life has been a continual search to raise my consciousness, to become, somehow, more. Writing is the best path I have found, given my nature. I suppose I could write in any genre, but I find my muse tends to lead me down pathways that involve magic, music and freedom.

DW: Did you ever consider ending Second Sight with a "Cleansing of the Shire" type of epilogue, where we could return to Eyri to pick up some of the loose ends?

I believe in ending a story when it is done. Epilogues are what come after the story, and I think it's best to avoid them. A little lingering mystery is good. There are threads that continue beyond Second Sight, and some things I chose not to conclude because once the story gets going they would slow things down and unravel the intensity of what was happening Oldenworld. They can be woven into a sequel, when Tabitha returns to Eyri and finds that things are … altered. So I've left these threads to use if they add something to the conflict of the next book, rather than weakening the climax of Second Sight by 'tying off loose ends'.

The Riddler’s Gift gets 5 stars on GoodBookAlert

Brandon Barney just posted a great review of The Riddler’s Gift on Good Book Alert. After sharing some insights on the pacing and (for him) surprising length, he picks on my favourite character.

Tabitha Serannon is a young girl who seems to be foolish, and easily turned around. Don’t let this fool you, throughout the novel her strength increases until the final climax. She is often accompanied by a man entitled The Riddler, and through this companion, we find not only the mystery of the novel, but the humor as well.

As the story progresses into a dark mist that keeps your mind probing in different direction, hoping to find a light, The Riddler guides you through his twisted speech, and his manner of avoiding the truth, while never telling a lie. I found myself looking for pieces that included him, just to see what he would say next. Most chapters begin with a quote by The Riddler, and give you something to think about before plunging into the next piece of your journey.

Aha! I must admit to being the same, because ‘putting his head on’ allowed me to see everything in a different (upside down) way, but being an interfering sort who tries hard not to interfere, he had to duck and dive through the story like a weasel through wildfire. This leads me on to a question posed by David Wagner:

Are all of the “riddles” at the beginnings of the chapters your own creations, or did you coop/modify sayings/proverbs from other sources?

The riddles come last

when the story is done.

They hint at what’s coming

but are sometimes just fun.

They come from a mind

where echoes are found

of what came before,

and songs tumble round.

-Zarost

The Riddler's Gift gets 5 stars on GoodBookAlert

Brandon Barney just posted a great review of The Riddler's Gift on Good Book Alert. After sharing some insights on the pacing and (for him) surprising length, he picks on my favourite character.

Tabitha Serannon is a young girl who seems to be foolish, and easily turned around. Don't let this fool you, throughout the novel her strength increases until the final climax. She is often accompanied by a man entitled The Riddler, and through this companion, we find not only the mystery of the novel, but the humor as well.

As the story progresses into a dark mist that keeps your mind probing in different direction, hoping to find a light, The Riddler guides you through his twisted speech, and his manner of avoiding the truth, while never telling a lie. I found myself looking for pieces that included him, just to see what he would say next. Most chapters begin with a quote by The Riddler, and give you something to think about before plunging into the next piece of your journey.

Aha! I must admit to being the same, because 'putting his head on' allowed me to see everything in a different (upside down) way, but being an interfering sort who tries hard not to interfere, he had to duck and dive through the story like a weasel through wildfire. This leads me on to a question posed by David Wagner:

Are all of the "riddles" at the beginnings of the chapters your own creations, or did you coop/modify sayings/proverbs from other sources?

The riddles come last

when the story is done.

They hint at what's coming

but are sometimes just fun.

They come from a mind

where echoes are found

of what came before,

and songs tumble round.

-Zarost

Fantasy Book Review: Second Sight reviewed by David Wagner

Over on My Little Corner of the World, David Wagner reveals that the Second Tale of the Lifesong made quite an impact on him. While not professing to be an expert reviewer, he is frank in his analysis and he has a talent for considerate, informative writing.

"If reading The Riddler's Gift is comparable to enjoying an amazing, detailed work of art in an art gallery somewhere, then reading Second Sight would be the equivalent of stepping outside the art gallery and enjoying/contemplating the stars.

Second Sight works on many levels. It has a fascinating cast of characters, both major and minor. It has interesting, varied environments. It has plenty of action and suspense, with near-perfect pacing. But to me, most importantly, it dealt with huge issues, both temporal and eternal, mortal and divine, in a way that not only didn't distract from the story-telling, but greatly enhanced it."

Off-handed criticism is easy to inflict; genuine praise is much harder, because you have to identify specific qualities from your memory of a long journey, and explain the reasons for the highs without giving away the story. There David has perhaps strayed a bit beyond the [SPOILER ALERT] It's a detailed analysis with some revelations about characters that you might prefer to discover for yourself, so if you haven't yet read Second Sight yet, come back to David's review later.

If there's one thing that's consistent with reviews of my fantasy books, it's variety. Every reader who has ever commented on the Lifesong has their own unique reaction, things they love and hate, details they hold onto and things that pass them by. I don't think it's possible to write a perfect book, loved by all, but I'm glad to have brought something to life that strikes a chord with like-minded souls.