Christine Rains's Blog, page 22

RPGs & Writing - guest post by Renee Cheung

I am honoured to be guest blogging at Christine’s and to follow up on her post about RPGs and writing. She and I go back quite a bit, to the days when we used to write together on Play by Email RPGs. (If you want to find out more about what they are, read her post here) and in truth, she was one of the people that inspired me to improve on my writing at the time, and she continues today to inspire and encourage me to write.

Maybe I’ll start at the beginning. Writing was always a bit of a chore for me, until I stumble into Yahoo Groups and found people writing together, controlling characters and creating stories. I immediately fell in love with the idea and joined in with an unholy enthusiasm that concerned my parents (I was in high school at that time).  Although I was really, really bad in the beginning, (some of my posts were literally one sentence!) I got better with practice. And that practice carried me well forward today in writing, whether it’s writing stories or technical documentation for work.
I won’t bore you with details about the latter. Really, it’s quite boring. Unless you’re writing it while drunk on champagne jello. But then again, I would think quite a few boring things would be fun if you were drunk on champagne jello.Anyhow, back to RPGs! As Christine mentioned in her past post, playing in these forums forced players to be character-focused and to be flexible in how events evolved because you never knew what other characters would do or say or react. It also gave everyone a chance to form some pretty strong friendships through the storytelling. (Exhibit A right here!)
I also wanted to touch a bit on the mechanics of writing that these RPGs have helped me develop. Because everything was through the written word and because other players depended on what each other wrote, I had to be very descriptive as a player. If my character walked into a new room, I had better describe that room well. Anything not mentioned was fair game for another player to build on and describe. And so, every post became an exercise in making me consider what to write and what to leave out, how to describe everything from the setting, to the mood and tone, to my character’s expressions and actions. On the other hand, I had to consider how to do it without overloading the posts with so much detail that it would not give other people’s characters room to breathe and act? (No one likes a control freak, especially when it comes to these RPGs.) Now when I write, I constantly ask myself the same questions. What do I want the reader to picture? What do I want to leave up to their imagination?
Christine also spoke a bit about experimenting different writing styles and characters and I wholeheartedly concur. Very often, many players including myself played more than one character. An easy trap to fall into was to have every character sound and act the same way. However, when you have them all interact in the same RPG, it becomes very obvious and I grew to learn the importance of developing distinct characters. This included everything from the way they react, their values and back stories, to their mannerisms and the way they talk. It is something I am still working on to master, but it is something that RPGs have brought to the forefront of my mind.
Another mechanic is in setting up conflict and this was especially important when I started my own RPG. Portals to World was meant to be an ultimate fanfiction crossover RPG and as the owner/moderator of the group, I was the one that set up the premise, the setting and the overarching conflicts that came in the characters’ ways. (For those that play Dungeons and Dragons, it’s the equivalent of the Dungeon Master who sets up the quests that players with their characters go on, usually via NPCs or non-player characters.) It became an exercise of how to set up situations and how to present them to the characters. Is it an in-your-face earthquake (or in my case, a random portal just opened up!) or is it a more subtle sinister creeping hint of a big bad coming that would span over multiple posts? Still, sometimes the conflict becomes a dud because it was just too easy, or sometimes it becomes a corner that gets hard to write out of and as the moderator, it was something I just had to roll with. Being the moderator of a RPG taught me to set up conflicts well and also taught me to be flexible when something doesn’t quite pan out the way I anticipated.
As I pick up writing back up again after a long hiatus, I fondly remember what I learned writing in those PBeM RPGs and I sincerely hope that there would be a chance to do it again some day. Perhaps not in that particular form, but to experiment with some sort of dynamic real-time storytelling. Have you played in any sort of storytelling games and if so, how have those affected your writing style? I’d love to hear more!

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Find out more about Renee on her website and blog.
Renee is one of the twelve amazing authors featured in this year's IWSG anthology, Hero Lost: Mysteries of Death and Life. Her story, "Memoirs of a Forgotten Knight" is set in the Physical/Digital world. A fantastic read! The anthology will be out at the beginning of May.

Check out her fantastic new release, Tales From The Digital .
Somewhere along the way, humans found a way to anchor magic into technology, bringing about the commercialization of once-mystic energies. Little do they know that by doing so, they also created a conduit for the fae and other creatures to migrate into a whole new land...

Deep Current (Totem #6) release

Always read the fine print when making a bargain with a sea hag.

Lost to the clutches of her grief of losing her mentor, Saskia Dorn welcomes the opportunity to take down a warehouse of drug dealers. When their leader makes a break for it, Saskia and her ex-boyfriend, Sedge, chase the criminal shifter into the sea off the coast of northwestern Alaska. Not only do they lose their quarry, but a vicious sea hag snatches Sedge.

Saskia can’t take another loss and attempts to bargain for Sedge’s life and the salmon totem the witch has trapped in her cave. The sea hag wants only one thing: her long lost love. Who is dead. And living under the freaking ocean with the Salmon People. Find the Salmon People and return with the witch’s love before Sedge’s life is forfeit. Simple, right? Yet she can’t leave the Salmon People’s land without finding herself first. 
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#IWSG for February 2017

The Insecure Writer's Support Group (IWSG) is the brilliant idea of Alex J. Cavanaugh. The purpose of the group is to share doubts and insecurities and to encourage one another. Please visit the other participants and share your support. A kind word goes a long way.

This month's awesome co-hosts are: Misha Gericke, LK Hill, Juneta Key, Christy, and Joylene Butler!

The IWSG question for this month: How has being a writer changed your experience as a reader?

I confess that sometimes my inner editor will interfere in my reading pleasure. Even if the story is entertaining, a badly written book will infuriate my inner editor. Whether it be technical issues or plot holes or bad characterization, I can't help the frustration.

If those issues are really bad, I will put down the book and not finish it. Five years ago, I would never do such a thing, but my reading time is as valuable as my writing time. I cannot afford to waste my time on a horrible book.

My insecurity this month: Feeling overwhelmed. I know if I just take it one step at a time, I'll be fine. But with the new year, I stepped back and looked at everything I have to do. Then I added more stuff on top of it. What was I thinking? I'm already behind on everything.

Wait, you say. You're a writer. You can make your own schedule.

Yes, I can. But I'm my own worst boss. I demand a lot from myself, and I do like the challenge. Yet at times like these, I can get overwhelmed, and I flail about and eat too many cookies.

How's the year going so far for you?

The Remnant Blog Tour - review and giveaway

Blurb:One nation, without God...
Colton Pierce apprehends Abberants—those who display symptoms of faith—and quarantines them on a remote island to ensure public safety.  Years prior, the government released a genetically-engineered super flu that destroyed the genes believed to be the biological source of spiritual experience in an effort to rid the world of terrorism. As an extractor with the Center for Theological Control, Colton is dedicated to the cause, his only distraction a new CTC employee, Selma.
But Colton's steadfast commitment is challenged when he learns his own son has been targeted for extraction. An underground militia, the Remnant, contacts him, and he discovers the purpose of Selma’s interest. The Remnant agrees to help Colton save his son in exchange for his assistance with their plan to free the Aberrants on the island.
Colton is faced with the most important decision of his life. Does he remain faithful to the CTC? Or trust Selma and the Remnant and give up everything to save his son?
My review:Colton Pierce is the top extractor with the Center for Theological Control (CTC), and he's determined to be the next director when his boss retires. The problem is he's arrogant and has no people skills. Skills he needs most when dealing with his son. Distracted by a beautiful new CTC employee, Selma, he is surprised when he discovers his son is on the list for extraction. Colton will do anything to protect his only child, even work with an underground militia group called the Remnant. With them, they may be able to free not only his son but all the Abberants in quarantine before they are put to death. Yet is the CTC lying to him or the Remnant? Who should he put his faith in?
An incredibly well-written tale of speculative fiction. It is interesting to ponder what the leaders of the world would do to rid it of war. In this book, they created a virus that destroyed genes that they believed were linked to spirituality. Anyone displaying behavior linked to religion is tagged, watched, and, if found guilty, extracted from society and forced to lived in exile on an island. A harsh punishment which some folks don't think is enough. They believe those Abberants need to be exterminated. A grim future.

At the beginning, I wasn't a fan of Colton. He had an inflated ego and a lack of consideration of others. But then there was his son Marty. His love for the boy, however misguided, put a crack in that extractor armor of his. And as the story progressed, more and more cracks appeared. Colton wasn't the man he presented to the world. This was amazing characterization of not only Colton, but all the cast of characters. Selma was one of my favorites. Brave and a little bit of a mystery, she's a woman to admire.
The plot takes us on several twists, and I wasn't certain who to trust. I wasn't even sure of the implants in their heads! Great suspense and action.


Buy the book:Amazon Barnes & NobleKoboiTunes
The print format of the book is available at these sites:Amazon  Barnes & NobleChapters-IndigoBook DepositoryFoylesMedianderFiction DB
Be sure to add it to your bookshelf on Goodreads.
About the author:
William Michael Davidson lives in Long Beach, California with his wife and two daughters. A believer that "good living produces good writing," Davidson writes early in the morning so he can get outside, exercise, spend time with people, and experience as much as possible.
A writer of speculative fiction, he enjoys stories that deal with humanity's inherent need for redemption.
For more on Davidson and his writing, connect with him on Goodreads, Twitter, Facebook, and Amazon Author’s Page.
This is a tour-wide giveaway for two (2) print copies that are available to those living in the U.S. only and one (1) eBook copy available international. The giveaway will end at 12 a.m. (EST) on Sunday, Feb. 26. You can enter to win at each stop of the tour.
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Thanks for stopping by today. Be sure to visit the other blogs on the tour for more chances to win. The schedule is located HERE.

Tsunami Crimes Blog Tour and Giveaway

Christine’s Question for Chrys: What was the most challenging part of writing Tsunami Crimes?You expect me to say the tsunami, right? In which case, you’d be…wrong. If your second guess is what happens to Beth after she’s taken prisoner by criminals, you’d be…wrong again.The tsunami came so easily to me. I actually skipped Beth and Donovan’s honeymoon and touristy scenes to dive right into the tsunami. I don’t know if it was easy because of all the research I did, my excitement, the nightmares I’ve had of tsunamis, or my fear of drowning, but every part of it came to me without any effort. Even the chapters after the tsunami were a snap for me to write. I used a lot of my own fears and experiences throughout Tsunami Crimes. I depict my near-drowning incident when a wave stretched clear over my head and crashed me into large rocks. I held onto those rocks for dear life as the water tried to suck me back. If I hadn’t, it would’ve taken me. That very moment is in Tsunami Crimes. Even hallucinations I’ve experienced, and memories from when I had spine surgery at fifteen, made it into this book.
Now you’re probably asking, So? What was the most challenging part? Do you recall how I said I skipped Beth and Donovan’s honeymoon and touristy scenes? Yup. Those were the most difficult parts for me to write because I had to go back, after reaching THE END, to fill in those chapters. I skipped them to get to the excitement, and then I had trouble getting in the mood for them after writing all of that excitement. But I did it, and I actually enjoy those scenes now. My characters deserve the happiness they experience in those moments. It was the least I could do…before unleashing Mother Nature on them. Again.
BLURB: Beth and Donovan have come a long way from Hurricane Sabrina and the San Francisco earthquake. Now they are approaching their wedding day and anxiously waiting to promise each other a lifetime of love. The journey down the aisle isn’t smooth, though, as they receive threats from the followers of the notorious criminal, Jackson Storm. They think they’ll be safe in Hawaii, but distance can’t stop these killers. Not even a tsunami can. This monstrous wave is the most devastating disaster Beth has ever faced. It leaves her beaten, frightened. Is she a widow on her honeymoon? As she struggles to hold herself together and find Donovan, she’s kidnapped by Jackson's men.Fearing her dead, Donovan searches the rubble and shelters with no luck. The thought of her being swept out to sea is almost too much for him to bear, but the reality is much worse. She’s being used as bait to get him to fall into a deadly trap. If they live through this disaster, they may never be the same again.
On SALE for $2.99!
BUY LINKS:
Amazon US / Amazon UK / Amazon CA
NOOK/ KOBO/ The Wild Rose Press
P.S. Hurricane Crimes and Seismic Crimes are on sale for 99 Cents!
BIO:Chrys Fey is the author of the Disaster Crimes Series. She is a blogger, reader, auntie, vegetarian, and cat Lover. Get Lightning Crimes (Disaster Crimes 2.5)forFREE!
FIND CHRYS:Facebook/ Twitter / Blog/ Website / Amazon/ Goodreads
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Ghost Cat (Totem #5) and a #free ebook!

Bigfoot is rampaging through a small fishing town, and he has friends.

The whispers say a boy is missing. Kinley Dorn can’t ignore them. The last time she did, a giant almost killed her. Her investigation in the boy’s disappearance leads her and her boyfriend, Ransom Averill, to a village on Lake Iliamna. Unfortunately, that boy isn’t the only child missing.

Some folks claim Bigfoot is taking the children, but the gentle creature usually stays away from humans. Kinley believes a totem is making Bigfoot act strangely, but can she and Ransom find it before more kids are abducted?
Buy it on Amazon.
Add it to read on Goodreads.
I loved being able to play with a new Bigfoot myth in this story. It's based on an old Inuit legend about the Urayuli, a huge and hairy bushman similar to Bigfoot. I won't say anything else as I don't want to ruin the surprise, but this is one of my favorite myths.
To celebrate the release to the fifth book in the Totem series, I'm offering the second book for free for five days!

RPGs & Writing - Imagination and Friends

I'm kicking off a series of posts about how playing role-playing games (RPGs) has affected my writing. This topic not only excited me, but other authors I know. I'm eager to have some of my writer friends share their experiences through guest posts too.
I've always loved writing stories. It can be a lonely venture, though. I used to play imagination games with my friends where we'd play out stories. Back then, I had never heard of RPGs. I didn't play my first Dungeons & Dragons game until I was in university. But I was already addicted to something else before then.
I loved playing PBeM RPGs. What are those, you ask? Play by email (or play-by-post) RPGs are games groups of people as their characters interact together in a predefined environment. Many groups have rules about not only the parameters of the world but also the conduct of the players and subject matter allowed.
I played in all sorts of groups. Most of them in Yahoo Groups. Fantasy, science-fiction, dystopian, and tons of Harry Potter groups. Yes, I do love playing in that world! What I liked most about these RPGs was that I didn't know what the other players would come up with next. I loved the twists and turns, the weird surprises, and the amazing stories we created together. Since I'm a pantser, I reveled in it.
With all these different types of worlds, I was able to experiment with different writing styles and various characters. I discovered that I loved to write about relationships - be it romantic, friends, enemies, etc. It was the characters who attracted me and drove me to become the character focused writer I am today. (One of the most character driven groups I had been in was a dystopian called Descent Into Sin . Deep, dark stuff.)
While these RPGs helped to mold me into the writer I am today, there was something else I loved about them: the friends I made. These friends encouraged me to write more of my own original work and gave me the strength to submit it to various venues. I had my first short story published because of their support. And even to this day, over fifteen years after I started in my first PBeM group, I'm still in contact with some of these amazing people. Not all of them write or play anymore, but they have never ceased to be fantastic cheerleaders and super friends.
Have you ever play in a PBeM RPG? A tabletop RPG like Dungeons & Dragons? What were your experiences like?
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I would like to extend an invitation to any writers who have played RPGs. I'd love for you to guest post on my blog about your experiences. If you're interested, please leave your email in the comments below, or email me at christinerains.writer@gmail.com.

The Backworlds Returns with Freefall

The first shot of a new war echoes through the galaxy. Craze has high hopes for what the alliance with an old enemy, the Foreworlds, will do to defeat a worse enemy, the Quassers.
The test of a highly-advanced weapon, created by the efforts of the alliance, pushes tensions over the brink and kills thousands. To make it worse, the Foreworld ambassador is keeping secrets.
Conventional warfare against the Quassers isn’t working, and if the alliance ends, Craze has become the most hated man in the galaxy for no reason.
With nothing left to lose, Craze sets in motion one last chance for survival.

  
Find M. Pax on her website!

Word Witch Wednesday - 2017 writing goals

It's a brand new shiny year. Time to start things off with a cheer. This begins by reviewing last year's goals.
2016 GOALS
1. Write the rest of the Totem books and start to publish them. Well, I wrote six of them and started on the seventh. Two things got in the way of this goal: my health and marketing. I'm telling myself to be satisfied that four are out and two are coming, and I haven't set a deadline to stress myself with for the last three.
2. Revise and submit the Sasquatch Susies series to my publisher. Done. They were published. My publisher closed. So I have no idea how the books did.
3. Read and review 100 books. Done! I did include books I read with my son. I believe children's books need love on Goodreads too.
4. Write and submit six short stories. Done. I was short-listed three times for pro markets, but I didn't make it.
5. Blogging. Finding a balance between writing and blogging. I still haven't found it.
2017 GOALS
1. Write the final three Totem novellas and publish them.
2. Write the second two books in the Of Blood and Sorrow trilogy. I'd like to say I'll publish them by the end of the year, but they will be two full sized novels, and I will not publish one until the other is done.
3. Self-publish the books I had with my publisher. I'm allowed to keep the covers at least!
4. Read and review 100 books. I hope to keep this up for the rest of my life!
5. Write and submit six short stories. I can't say I have time to write one every month, but sometimes a great idea for a flash piece hits me, and I have to scribble it down. I'm still aiming at the pro markets.
6. Continue to study and try out different marketing techniques. Slowly but surely, I'm learning. I'm trying to figure out what works for me. And I will definitely share with you what I've learned.
7. Improve my writing speed and focus. Last month, I used writing sprints, and they've been working for me. It silences my inner editor and the words flow. I don't know if I could ever get to 5000 words an hour, but that much a day would be amazing.
What are your goals for the year?

A reminder from your friendly neighborhood polar bear:

Shattered Spirit (Totem #4) Release & All It Takes cover reveal!

A haunted house isn’t going to stop Ametta Dorn from doing her job.

Frustrated that her family has left her out of the search for the missing totem tokens, Ametta Dorn loses herself in her work. She’s offered a dream job of a complete interior renovation of a famous Cremaschi house. Not even discovering the house belongs to Lucky Osberg can dampen her enthusiasm.

Lucky’s plan to spend more time with her as she works goes awry when the spirit who protects his home tries to murder her. Ametta won’t be scared off, despite being tempted to run and never come back. She was going to flee Alaska and pursue her designer dreams anyway, yet that means giving up on Lucky and the totem that is just within her grasp.
Buy it on Amazon!
Add it to read on Goodreads.

To celebrate the release of Shattered Spirit, the first book in the Totem series, Dark Dawning is FREE!



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I’m thrilled to reveal the cover for Clare Dugmore’s dual-POV contemporary romance ALL IT TAKES, scheduled for release February 14, 2017, and announce that it’s now available for pre-order for delivery to your Kindle on release day.[image error]Title: All It TakesAuthor: Clare DugmoreGenre: RomanceRelease Date:February 14, 2017Publisher: Snowy Wings Publishing Add to your Goodreads to be read listPre Order on Amazon US | Amazon UK
Description:All It Takes is one night to change the rest of their lives.Graduating Uni, travelling Europe and buying her own place – these are on Megan Green’s to-do list.At just twenty-two, becoming a mother isn’t.Fast cars, expensive clothes and bedding a different women every night – this is how Kian Murphy spends his time when not in the MMA ring. Pre-natal scans and birthing classes are not on his agenda.After a chance meeting and passionate encounter, Megan finds herself pregnant with Kian’s child. But with a womanizing reputation, and a temper that often leads him into trouble, Kian is hardly boyfriend material, let alone father material.Now Megan and Kian must work out if they have All It Takes to turn their one-night-stand into a relationship that will connect them for a life-time. All It Takes is a dual-POV new-adult, contemporary-romance about responsibility, love and discovering who you are in life.
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