Anne Lyle's Blog, page 10

Want to know a secret?

This week my friend Emma Newman’s second urban fantasy novel is being published. To mark the occasion she’s hidden a bunch of cool (magical?) objects on her website for readers to find, but you can steal a march by following the link below…

Any Other Name is the second novel in the Split Worlds series, following on directly after the events in Between Two Thorns. Cathy is secretly seeking a way out of Nether Society by helping Max and the gargoyle to investigate the murders in the Bath Chapter. When she learns more about the mysterious Agency which oils the wheels of life in the Nether it becomes clear that the privileged few are enjoying their existence at a price far higher than they realised. It’s time to change Nether society, but with assassins, Fae lords and revengeful fallen Rosas to deal with, can Cathy survive long enough to make a difference?

Join in the treasure hunt by visiting the Split Worlds website and read about the first of the secret objects!

Release date: 28th May US/Canada paperback, audio and e-book worldwide, 6th June 2013 UK paperback

Signed copies will be available from Toppings Books, Bath and Forbidden Planet.

Pre-order options
UK Print & Ebook

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US Print & Ebook

| | IndieBound.org

DRM-Free Epub Ebook

On-sale May 28th 2013 from the Robot Trading Company

Pre-order the audio version from |

Friday Reads: Last Argument of Kings, by Joe Abercrombie

While the King of the Union lies on his deathbead, the peasants revolt and the nobles scramble to steal his crown. No-one believes that the shadow of war is falling across the very heart of the Union. The First of the Magi has a plan to save the world, as he always does. But there are risks. There is no risk more terrible, after all, than to break the First Law…

Warning: contains spoilers!

I’ve reviewed the first two volumes of the First Law trilogy (The Blade Itself and Before They Are Hanged) already, having enjoyed both of them, and I was anxious to find out how my favourite characters would fare in this final instalment. In truth I was a little anxious, having seen a forum post by someone saying they were disappointed with the ending and felt that Abercrombie had shat on his characters (the reader’s words, not mine). Having read it, I have to disagree. I felt that this was a great conclusion to the series which nonetheless leaves most of the characters with room for more adventures.

Like many a third book in a trilogy (including my own), Last Argument of Kings has the unenviable task of tying up a number of separate plot threads. There’s the war, of course, still being fought on two fronts; Glokta’s continuing mission to survive the intrigues around him, made worse by the fact that he’s deep in debt to a powerful banking house; and then there’s Bayaz’s plans to wipe out Khalul and the Eaters, with scant regard for anyone who gets in his way. This being the finale, there are of course more fights, explosions, and double-crossings…and Glokta gets to do some serious on-page torture. It’s not all grit and gloom, though; a number of characters enjoy moments of triumph, and at least some of them end the book as happily as one could reasonably expect in a series with such a cynical tone.

I confess that, as with the previous book, I skimmed some of the fight scenes. As a writer I understand why they’re there—they’re necessary to the plot and Abercrombie does them well—but as a reader I find fight scenes of more than a few paragraphs really dull. I’m not interested in the messy details, so I just skim to find out if anyone significant dies

Apart from that I found the book engrossing, and it really had me on the edge of my seat on a couple of occasions—because with flawed heroes, you’re always afraid they might take that final step across to the Dark Side. As to whether any of them do or not, I guess you’ll have to read it and find out! All I’ll say is that the chapter “Patriotic Duties” made this Glokta fan-girl very happy indeed…

Big old spoiler ahoy!

Some people have had a go at Abercrombie for the treatment of the character Terez, Jezal’s wife who turns out to be a lesbian. I admit that Glokta’s internal monologue did feel off-key in this chapter, when throughout the series he’s shown himself to have a soft spot for women. The fact that he threatens Terez’s lover with gang-rape, therefore, didn’t bother me too much, because that’s all it was: a threat. A nasty threat, admittedly, but Glokta makes a lot of threats that he does not (and in some cases, cannot) follow through on. Perhaps I’m biased by my fondness for the two men at the centre of this episode, and no doubt it could have been handled more subtly, but to me at least, a woman being blackmailed into sex because it’s politically vital for her to produce heirs, and a woman being brutally raped for the pleasure of her rapist have very different emotional impacts. Also, Abercrombie has admitted he could have done better, which is more than I’ve ever heard of GRRM.

I’m a little sad that I’ve reached the end of the trilogy, especially as the sequels seem to focus even further on the combat side of things. I know Joe is planning a new trilogy at the moment, and I hope this will feature more intrigue and cynical humour, and a move away from the lengthy swordfests. In the meantime I guess I have a good excuse to read some more K J Parker…

Seduce me

No, not like that – eww! I mean with your book, dammit…

Well, hellooo…

Since I’m working on a new project at the moment, that’s got me 1) reading a lot more, because for once I actually have time to spare to find out what my peers have been up to, and 2) thinking about what I enjoy in a fantasy novel. About why I love some books and hate (or at least feel ‘meh’ about) others. Why I prefer books with male protagonists. And it all comes down to one thing: falling in love.

I want a protagonist who’s witty and charming (Locke Lamora). Or snarky and clever (Sand dan Glokta). Or who defies prejudice despite the horrible consequences (Ringil Eskiath). Give me that, and I’ll put up with most other flaws or bugbears* in a novel. Because I’m there to spend time with the hero.

(N.B. That doesn’t mean he has to be someone I’d want to date in real life, as the above list demonstrates! But he needs to be someone who gets under my skin, who has likeable qualities despite his flaws. Above all, someone I want to see succeed.)

In fact I reckon it’s a big reason why I read fantasy rather than romance. I don’t want to read about someone else falling in love with the hero, I want to go through that process myself. He’s mine, I tell you, all mine! Mwahaha! (OK, I may have drunk too much tea whilst writing this post…)

Anyway, it’s one of the reasons I didn’t enjoy A Song of Ice and Fire (to the point where I only read the first two books). Yes, Tyrion fits the bill perfectly, and he’s probably my favourite character – but there’s just not enough of him (pun intended). We only see a few chapters from his point of view—he’s just one voice in a multitude—and that isn’t enough. I think my husband, who has only seen the TV series, put it well when he said he’d prefer the show if it were  ”The Adventures of Tyrion Lannister”.

So, whilst much about my new project will have to remain under wraps for a long time, you can be pretty sure that it will feature one or more charming heroes whom I hope you will fall in love with as much as I do. I look forward to introducing you to them.

 

* Except for pervasive misogyny. Another strike against ASOIAF, to be honest. (To be clear, I mean the characters, not the author. But it’s still unpleasant to read.)

The Prince of Lies: finished cover

Yesterday one of my favourite genre websites, Fantasy Faction, did an exclusive cover reveal for the final book in my Night’s Masque trilogy. However I can’t resist posting it on my blog as well, as I’m so pleased with it!

As with The Merchant of Dreams, I briefed my editor Marc on what I wanted to see on the cover and he passed it along to Larry Rostant, who interpreted our instructions beautifully. The lightning bolts weren’t in my original brief but I have to admit they give it an extra pizazz that leaves you in no doubt that some serious magic is going on here!

To go with the cover I have an updated description as well:

Elizabethan spy Mal Catlyn has everything he ever wanted—his twin brother Sandy restored to health, his family estate reclaimed and a son to inherit it—but his work is far from over. The renegade skraylings, the guisers, are still plotting; their leader Jathekkil has reincarnated as the young Henry Tudor. But with the prince still a child, Mal has a slim chance of destroying his enemies while they are at their weakest.

With Sandy’s help Mal learns to harness his own magic in the fight against the guisers, but it may be too late to save England. Schemes set in motion decades ago are at last coming to fruition, and the barrier between the dreamlands and the waking world is wearing thin…

I’m really looking forward to unleashing the book on the world come October – the fact that I shall be waving goodbye to Mal, Coby, Ned and friends hasn’t really sunk in yet…

What next?

The Prince of Lies is revised and handed in, which means it’s all over for Night’s Masque apart from final tweaks and copyedits. Yes, sorry, fans of Mal, Coby, Ned and Gabriel – their adventures are over, at least for now. I have no immediate plans for any more books in that universe, though if I were to get a great idea for a story, it’s certainly possible.

So what next, you might ask? Well, I’ve been jotting down notes in-between drafts of The Prince of Lies so that I could hit the ground running once that book was complete. However I couldn’t really allow myself to commit to it until now because I don’t have time in my busy schedule for distractions and side projects. Now I can, I’m sooo excited to be launching into something new!

Shiny new Moleskines, just waiting to be filled with awesomeness!

It’s rather daunting to be starting again from scratch, as I haven’t written anything outside the Night’s Masque universe (apart from a couple of short stories) since at least 2006. Golly! Fortunately I have my recent jottings, plus a pile of worldbuilding from projects that never got beyond a few opening chapters, so I have plenty of raw material to draw upon. Plus, after seven years of working with the same universe and set of characters, my Muse is having a real blast coming up with cool new stuff.

You’re probably dying to know what I have planned, but as I mentioned in a post two months ago it’s still very in the early stages: no real plot yet, just some character sketches and a rough idea of the setting. What I can say is that it will be secondary-world fantasy (i.e. set in an invented world not a fantasy version of the past) but with a similar flavour to Night’s Masque: mainly urban settings, full of action and intrigue and a dash of romance. This time, though, I want to be bigger and bolder with my character and setting than I was able to do for the Elizabethan books (at least, not without straying into parody or pastiche). With an invented world I can really let my imagination run riot!

Another reason for writing secondary-world is that I began to find historical European culture confining. I managed to squeeze female and gay characters into my story of Elizabethan intrigue by putting them on the fringes of society and, in the case of Coby, in disguise, but now I want to write about somewhere different. Somewhere that has its own flaws, sure, but not all the tiresome prejudices we struggle with even today.

Although I won’t be able to reveal much about this new series until it’s sold, I’ll be posting what news I can about my progress and also blogging about worldbuilding over the next few months, since it’s very much on my mind at the moment. And of course there’s lots more about The Prince of Lies coming this year, starting with a cover reveal – expect that very soon!

The Prince of Lies final draft – done!

I know – I didn’t post here at all after the first week, but I was so focused on the draft itself, I didn’t have the time or energy. Usually I give myself two months for initial revisions (and that’s what’s specified in my contract) but this book was already running late and I didn’t have that luxury.

It was a gruelling process, trying to revise a substantial novel in a month, but I got it done, finally handing in the draft to my editor Marc on Tuesday 7th May. He may still want a few tweaks before it goes to the copyeditor, but it’s basically complete as far as I’m concerned. If I got hit by a bus next week, the book could still go out and I’d be happy at the result. Well, not the being dead or incapacitated part, but you know what I mean.

At first I was so relieved to have hit my deadline—and so mentally drained—that I was just glad to have it done and out the door. It wasn’t until a couple of days later that I started to feel a bit sad that I won’t be writing about Mal, Coby and friends again, at least not any time soon. Their story has come to (for me at least) a satisfying conclusion and I’m ready to move on to new things. In any case it’s not over yet; there’s copyedits to check and the book release itself to look forward to, and even sooner than that—the cover reveal! Watch my main blog for more news on that, very soon

Friday Reads: Red Seas Under Red Skies, by Scott Lynch

Having left Camorre after the deaths of their fellow Gentleman Bastards at the hands of the Bondsmagi, Locke Lamora and Jean Tannen are running a new scam in the Sinspire, a high-class casino in the city of Tal Verrar. Unfortunately the Bondsmagi haven’t finished with Locke yet, and he and Jean find themselves working—decidedly unwillingly—for a Verrari warlord with an ambition to rule the city outright. Temporarily abandoning the scam they take up their new mission, starting with a crash course in seamanship and a new cover identity as the dread pirate Orrin Ravelle…

Warning: here be spoilers! Because it’s otherwise hard to say what I liked (and didn’t like) about the book. And hell, it’s six years old, so I reckon many of my visitors will have read it already anyway.

I’d been putting off reading this book for ages, mainly because a particularly gruesome torture scene in The Lies of Locke Lamora gave me nightmares! I’m glad I didn’t let it stop me, though, as Red Seas is somewhat less violent (or at least not so horrible as that one scene from LoLL) and generally a lot more fun. It has pirates! And kittens! Pirates with kittens! (Yes, really.)

It also has an awesome new character: Zamira Drakasha, a pirate captain who’s also a black, middle-aged widowed mother. Because as Lynch says in a devastating put-down of a bigot who found her implausible, “why shouldn’t middle-aged mothers get a wish-fulfillment character?”. Now, I’m not one of those readers who’s actively looking for female characters, especially mothers —I read fantasy to get away from the more humdrum aspects of my everyday life—but I applaud Lynch for creating one and doing a damned good job of it. In fact one gets the impression that the crew of the Poison Orchid is about as mixed in terms of gender, race and sexuality as the population of a real-world country such as the US.

And whilst there’s plenty of the usual Crooked Warden shenanigans and wildly imaginative world-building we’ve come to expect from Lynch, Red Seas also puts Locke and Jean through the emotional wringer, which adds depth to what could otherwise be a lighthearted romp in the vein of Pirates of the Caribbean. Locke begins the story in deep depression and mourning for his lost comrades (told in flashback to avoid slowing down the narrative), and Jean ends it in equally deep mourning for a new one. I confess I saw Ezri’s death coming a mile off, because Red Seas is basically a buddy movie and her survival would break up their operation, but to Lynch’s credit the incident is so well written that it still comes as punch to the gut and you want to hug the grieving Jean and weep with him.

If I have one complaint, it’s the cliffhanger-teaser at the beginning of the book. That scene is awesome and made me unable to put the book down until I’d found out how it ended – but when I finally got there (many pages later, since it’s towards the end), the pay-off didn’t quite deliver. I don’t know if the teaser was Lynch’s decision or his editor’s, but whilst it made a damned good hook it ultimately spoiled the novel a bit for me.

Overall, an excellent second installment to the series, and I can’t wait for Republic of Thieves to come out in October! Which reminds me – I also need to buy a paperback copy of Red Seas Under Red Skies (I read it in ebook) for Scott to sign at World Fantasy

Epic fantasy? What does that even mean?

Yesterday I finished the final draft of The Prince of Lies – yay! – which inevitably left me feeling more than a little punch-drunk, like I’d been hit round the head with a 135,000-word manuscript…So I goofed around on Twitter a bit, and whilst chatting about book lengths and genre I realised that fantasy really needs a new name for a rather common sub-genre.

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I raised this on Twitter, suggesting “cloak’n'dagger” as an alternative. I got some great (not always serious) alternative suggestions:

The Streets of Darkness
Hooded Figure Fantasy
Poignards’n'privies (very apt in my case!)
Mock-Tudorpunk
Grime’n'punishment
Alchemical romance (by analogy with Wells’ “scientific romance”)

What do you think? Do we need a new label for non-epic, non-contemporary fantasy?

Tech review: Story Skeleton

I started using virtual index cards back in 2006 when planning for my first NaNoWriMo, and I still find them a useful way of managing a big project like a novel. I like physical index cards as well, but they’re a pain to carry around with you – which is where an app like Story Skeleton comes in.

Story Skeleton is an iPhone app that allows you create and export outlines in a variety of formats, including as a Scrivener .scriv project. It’s this that first interested me, and I used it for an initial outline of The Prince of Lies.

Overall it’s quite a nice little app. The design is a bit fussy in some respects – on a small screen, I prefer the controls to adhere more closely to Apple conventions – but not difficult to get the hang of. You can display cards fullscreen and swipe between them, or list them as thumbnails (see screenshot, right) and scroll up and down.

There’s no hierarchical structure, however. If you want to assign scenes to chapters or acts, a workaround is to set up “card types” (a customisable list of categories), but then of course you have to recategorise cards when you move them. It’s also iPhone-only – you can use it on an iPad but the whole interface gets resized to fit the large screen and is therefore rather blurry.

Another point against it from my point of view is that whilst it has import and export capabilities, it doesn’t actually sync with Scrivener as such – you can only import outlines previously created in StorySkeleton and exported in its custom format (e.g. as backup). As a result, I found it useful for quick’n'dirty outlining at the beginning of a project, but the limitations of both synchronisation and screen real-estate mean that it doesn’t really fit well into my workflow.

StorySkeleton is available from the iTunes App Store, currently priced at $2.99.

The Joy of Stationery

My name is Anne Lyle and I’m a stationery addict. There, I’ve said it. I have more notebooks, pens and other impedimenta of writing than is strictly necessary. A lot more. I discovered just how much more when I was between drafts recently…

I’d handed in the first draft of The Prince of Lies to my editor and was taking a few days off to decompress. I didn’t want to get too engrossed in a new project, as I knew I’d have to dive back into revisions pretty soon, so I decided to tidy the drawers of my desk and bureau, which had descended into chaos over the previous few months. So, I emptied them out, put all my “work-in-progress” notebooks, index cards and so on into my desk drawer, and all my unused notebooks into the top drawer of my bureau. The latter filled the entire drawer.

My notebook drawer. Problem, what problem?

Now admittedly it isn’t a big drawer, and I also store spare loose-leaf pads and unopened packs of index cards in there, but still…! I have numerous Moleskines in different colours, sizes and paper types, including two specifically for use with EverNote and two special editions (Lego and Star Wars); a bunch of LiveScribe notebooks, also in several sizes, for use with my Echo smartpen; and a few other miscellaneous notebooks from Paperchase, WHS, Rymans etc. I even have a gorgeous leather-bound journal that I bought in Florence, which I will probably never use because it’s far too beautiful to sully with my scribblings…

Europa Major notepads – fat enough to plan a Big Fat Fantasy!

And then there’s my “archive” drawer of used notebooks. I have had obsessions with different brands before Moleskine; for a while it was Bur-O-Class Aurora exercise books, in which I wrote my earliest longhand drafts, then more recently it was the Europa Major spiral-bound reporter’s notebook, with 300 pages between richly-coloured cardboard covers, in which I brainstormed the plots and characters for my Night’s Masque trilogy.

Rationally, I know I do not need all these notebooks, because I do a lot of my work electronically. And yet I’m addicted to the damned things! When I was in California in February, I bought two Moleskines in a bookstore solely because they were in colours (green and purple) seldom seen in UK shops.

It’s a common foible of writers, judging by my friends’ reactions, and I think it comes down to a combination of traits:

1. A love of books and paper. There’s something very sensuous and satisfying about a high-quality notebook: the handsome cover, the way your pen glides across the thick creamy surface of the paper, the snap of the elastic fastener, the slither of the silky placeholder ribbon… You just can’t get these pleasures from an app, no matter how cool it might be in other ways.

2. Romanticism. We imagine the great authors of the 19th and 20th centuries scribbling golden prose into their pocket notebooks, and we think that if only we could do the same, our books would be just as wonderful.

3. The OCD impulses of the typical writer. Allied to the above, we believe that if we have just the right notebook, fresh and crisp and virginal, we too can be brilliant. We start a notebook with dewy-eyed optimism, which often devolves into despair at our terrible handwriting, multiple crossings-out and rambling prose. So, we abandon it for a fresh notebook. Once the habit becomes entrenched, we make sure we always have a good supply of shiny new ones to hand, because the next one is going to be perfect…

I think, though, that the seeds were sown in school. All those separate exercise books for each subject, often with a different colour per subject as well. And—this being a provincial girls’ grammar school with pretensions of grandeur—we had to write our homework in fountain pen (biros were for “rough” only). That kind of thing is liable to make a girl just a little obsessive!

How about you? Do you have a weakness for a particular brand or style of notebook? Or do you eschew paper for a purely digital writing experience?