Scott Bryan's Blog, page 24

The A to Z Challenge! F is for Farnalla

F is for Farnalla
Eli the elf comes from a world called Farnalla. See Farnalla is just like Earth, except two things.1) It's devoid of humans. There are all sorts of wild life, but no humans ever existed on that Earth. 2) Pangaea broke up differently and the continents took different shapes.
Long ago all the mythical creatures such as elves, fairies, dwarfs and even a small colony of humans all crossed from Annabelle's Earth to the world they call Farnalla. Then each species of mythical creatures separated into their own nations.
Some, like the elves, fauns, centaurs and fairies populated the western continent while the dwarfs, ogres, minotaurs, trolls and giants populated the eastern continent. The dragons flew off and took their own world.
Myths takes place centuries after the Great Farnalla Exodus, when a new generation live in a world where magic has given them all the wonders that science has given us.  
I created maps showing the various ages of Farnalla but I've since changed my mind on things. These maps are inaccurate now, but I'll post the current one anyway, show show you a peek behind the scenes.

The A to Z Challenge! E is for Eli the Elf

Vampires are not the only things on my brain. I'm a fan of several things, including fantasy books and movies like Lord of the Rings and Narnia.

Way back in the eighties I had an idea for a band of mythical characters trapped in our world. I played with the idea and mapped our various versions of the story. After I wrote Annabelle's rough draft, I  decided to become an author and share all these ideas. It was only natural that my mythical story would be one of the novels I'd want to write.

Today E is for Eli, the main protagonist of my novel Myths.

Eli is your typical teenage elf. He lives with his mom and younger brother. His dad used to train both his sons at archery. As an elf, Eli has a natural skill with the bow. He has a creative streak and has bought several pre-set scroll spells from a local merchant. He then fixed them onto his arrows to give them an extra kick.

Eli's family was happy until they got word that his father was killed in the war. Since that time he has withdrawn a bit. His mother hasn't helped the situation because she constantly compares him to his father, stating that he should be more like the heroes in their family.

All this has given Eli the desire to leave on a quest with his sorcerer apprentice friend Mark. Said quest will lead Eli not only to the other side of their world, Farnalla, but to another world.  He and his friends discover a mythical place only told about in fairy tales and horror stories. A place where only humans dwell. A place called Earth.

Here are some elf pictures I've gathered from the web...

The A to Z Challenge! D is for Dominic

Of course how can I resist? I must show off my main villain.

D is for Dominic Pratchet. He's the youngest son of the first vampire, Lilith. He's the dreaded monster lord whom all either obey or suffer his eternal wrath.

He's been known by many names over the centuries. His real name is Domi but for a time he took over from a famous figure in history and took the name Dracula. Yes, he's THAT Dracula.

I don't have any artwork of Dominic but I have collected various pieces that to me shows kind of what I imagine the tall dark demon of Annabelle's nightmares.  Here are those pictures:


And don't forget to pop over to Antagonize Me for their interview with Dominic!

The A to Z Challenge! C is for Capture

C is for Capture!
More specifically, a scene from NIGHT CHILDREN: DARK BIRTH where Roland gets captured!


Chapter Twenty-Five: Wild Blood Man


He woke in chains.  If he could see the position of the moon he’d know how long he’d been unconscious, but he sat inside a closed up traveling box.  Although it was completely black inside, his nocturnal eyes had no trouble seeing everything it contained. 
Thick wood paneling stood up on all four sides and the top, blocking out the sunlight.  He would’ve thought he might be inside a small building except he could feel it moving down the road. 
He pulled at the silver chains but they wouldn’t budge.  The metal felt too hot to touch.  Despite his overwhelming exhaustion, Roland forced himself to try to turn into a bat.  If he was small enough to slip out he might be able to fly to safety.  Nothing happened.  He tried to calm his frightened thoughts and focus again, but it still didn’t work.
Wildes Blut-Tier was sprawled against a corner of the room.  His blazing red eyes watched Roland silently. 
Looking away from those eerie eyes, Roland started to take in his surroundings.  There were strange traps hanging all over the walls.  Some looked like bear and rabbit traps, but others appeared more fiendish.  He then noticed the piles of animal fur.  Many of them were from animals like foxes, wolves, and bears.  Other furs seemed to come from animals he’d never seen before. 
A sasquatch skin caught his eye.  He wondered if Fenroth had a hard time killing it. 
Roland noticed something even more peculiar.  What looked like human sized insect limbs swung from the ceiling, swaying back and forth with the movement of the carriage.  Mysteriously large fish scales rested in a corner, glinting with an emerald hue.
Roland spotted the werewolves, Set and Hades, deep asleep in their cages.  For a moment he felt pity on them.  He shuddered at the thought of being trapped as a wolf forever. 
Wildes wasn’t the only one watching him.  A single crow eyed him sadly from its cage by the door.  He thought such a harmless bird didn’t belong in this place of horrors.  An empty bunk covered in fur and surrounded by strange weapons and traps rested in the back of the wagon.  That’s where Fenroth must sleep.
Henry rested against the wall beside him.  Relief briefly washed away fear when Roland saw his friend’s chest move slowly and heard Henry’s heartbeat.
He gently nudged him with his leg and whispered as quietly as possible, “Henry, wake up.”
“Whu...?”
“Don’t scream.  Fenroth will stop the carriage.  Are you all right?”
Henry pulled on his chains but of course they didn’t budge.  Roland had no success so he knew a regular human wouldn’t have any luck.
“Roland, I’m glad you’re here.  Charlie got me while I was sleeping.  He knocked me out with a shovel.  My head still hurts.”  His face white with fear, he kept trying to pull free.
“It’s useless.  How did you wind up here?”
“Charlie must have carried me into the woods, but I woke up and kicked him.  He dropped me, so I started to run but I heard Polly calling for help.  It startled me enough for Charlie to knock me out again.  I woke up here.  Can’t you change into a bat and escape?”
“Nope, but I’ll keep trying.”
He felt the carriage bump and realized it must’ve driven off the main dirt road.  Suddenly it came to a grinding halt.  He heard the sound of people climbing down the side of the wagon and then walking around.  The door opened, and Roland caught a peek outside.  A faint pink glow briefly illuminated the black interior, causing Wildes to squint and whimper.  It was almost dawn. 
An Indian girl entered, followed by Fenroth.  He closed the door and gave Roland a self-satisfied smirk.  “Better get some sleep.  We’ve got a long journey to the Master’s secret lair.” 
“Dominic told his servants we were off limits.  You’d better let us go.” 
Fenroth let out a big, deep laugh.  “The Master warned you to remain behind the barrier.”  He casually walked to his bed.  The girl sat on a small pile of skins.  She appeared roughly sixteen years old. 
Fenroth gave a toothy smile.  “He said if you left, you’d be fair game.”


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For more check out Dark Birth at your local online store. Links to Dark Birth on the web can be found on the Store Page on this blog or you could just go here, Dark Birth on Amazon.

The A to Z Challenge! B is for Bats!

Today on the A to Z Challenge:

B is for Bats. I love them. They flutter and hang upside down and are so cute in their fur!

Of course my affection for bats really started after Annabelle came into my life. Every vampire author has to be Anne Rice. They all have to say that vampires turning into bats is silly. Well I way "Why? Wouldn't there be far more story if you show that ability and the good and bad of it?"

Anyway, here are some bat pictures I collected on the web...

Antagonise Me features Dominic!

The website Antagonise Me is featuring my big bad guy, Dominic Pratchet! Check it out!

A big THANK YOU to Virginia S Grenier for the opportunity to feature Dominic!

The A to Z Challenge! A is for Annabelle!

   Welcome to the first day of the A to Z Challenge! I'm excited about this because it's a chance to have a post every day!  I could have picked a theme and for the most part I'll be showing you my worlds and characters, but some times I'll break away from that. I didn't want a theme to hamper my creativity. Today's letter is A. Of  course who else could I feature but she who started it all. The vampire child that did what no other character in my head could. She somehow convinced me that I should share her story with not just a small group of friends, but the world, making me take chances I never before took.  As the main character in my Night Children series, Annabelle Foresight has had blog entrees devoted her who she is, her story and life.  But seeing as the A to Z posts really should be special, I want to do something different. So for this time only, I will share with you art and photos that I have customized. They are not mine and if the owners of the original pieces complain, I will remove them. But for now I want you to have a glimpse into my head, over eight years ago, to the various pictures I customized. I used these to help think of Annabelle and focus on her character.       

These are all Kirsten Dunst in the role of Claudia, the vampire child from Interview With a Vampire. That was the movie that inspired me to create Annabelle in the first place.

Hope you like them.

Talk to you tomorrow.

E is NOT for Easter

Happy Easter! I hope everyone had a good one. And for those of you who don't celebrate it, I hope you still had a great day.

My kids are older. My son painfully waited for the teens to wake up. We goofed around until it got late enough to wake up the teens. Then they looked for the eggs and thier baskets. Later on we saw the Host. My sweetheart stayed home cuase she's not feeling well.

I'm post poning Who's Who in the Annabelle Universe and Bite of Story Thursdays for a month becuase of something bigger.

Starting tomorrow this blog will take part in...


Yes, I'll be part of the A to Z April Challenge.
Each day I'll post something that starts with a letter of the alphabit. With Sundays excluded, there will be enough days of the month to include each letter. I'll show pics that inspire me, never before seen pictures as well as story bits for your enjoyment.

Watch this space. It all starts tomorrow.

Pixar’s 22 Rules of Storytelling by Mark Frauenfelder

Mark Frauenfelder over at Boing Boing has a great article about Pixar and their 22 Rules of Storytelling.

Some great concepts are included.

Bite of Story Thursday

Night Children: Dark Birth

Chapter Thirteen : The Shopkeeper


Eliza spoke up in an almost hypnotic tone, “Try to focus.  Look him in the eyes and focus your will.  Push your desires over his.” 
Annabelle did just that.  She took a deep breath and looked deeply into his hate filled eyes.  She repeated, “I would like to buy this doll.  Please.”
The storeowner blinked and nodded his head.  He rang up the doll and told her the price.  Annabelle placed some currency on the counter and then walked towards Eliza with a broad smile on her face. 
Roland stepped forward and pointed behind the man, “Can I have that ball, sir?” 
“What’s going on?  How did that girl get that doll?  Who are you urchins?” 
Roland tried to focus. “The ball, sir.  Give it to me.”  His face scrunched up with concentration.  Annabelle suppressed a giggle, but when the storeowner ignored him and stormed over to yank the doll out of her hands, she blanched.
“Give me that, you stupid urchin!” He raised his arm to hit her but in a blur Roland grabbed his arm.  The storekeeper’s eyes widened with shock.
“Roland, stop!”  Before he could bite down on the man’s arm, Annabelle pushed her brother back.  Roland’s body smashed into a display of dishes.
As he stood up and brushed the broken plates off, Eliza scolded him. “We don’t feed on mortals, remember?” 
“He couldn’t hurt me,” Annabelle chimed in.
“My dishes!  How can you urchins move so--” Eliza silenced the storekeeper with a stern glance. 
The minute Eliza’s eyes locked with Roland’s, his defiance melted to shame.  “I’m sorry.  I thought he was going to hurt her.” 
Annabelle hugged him. “Thank you for caring enough to try and save me.” 
The firmness in Eliza’s voice grabbed their attention. “Roland, next time control your temper and focus.  He cannot harm us.  He has no wooden stake or any other weapon.  To properly mesmerize someone you must push your thoughts over theirs.  Push your will.  Now try it.” 
“Mister Shopkeeper, it’s not nice to bully others.  You should be more polite.” 
The man mumbled the word, “Polite.” 
“Now please go fetch that red ball.  Yes.  Thank you.”  Roland placed the money on the counter and continued with his practice.  “Now forget you ever saw us and... leave.  Yes!  Leave town.” 
“Roland, wait.  You can’t just tell him to--” 
Annabelle’s voice must’ve broken the trance because the shopkeeper’s eyes opened wide with terror.  Eliza spoke up quickly.  “The trance I put him under has completely broken.  He can see us for what we truly--” 
“You’re vampires!” His face white with fear, he shouted, “Vampires are in my shop!  I’m going to die!  Help!”    ---------------
For more check out Dark Birth at your local online store. Links to Dark Birth on the web can be found on the Store Page on this blog or you could just go here, Dark Birth on Amazon.