Ben Hennessy's Blog, page 5

It’s DAY-US, not JUICE.

Deus ex machina.

It’s a term you’re probably familiar with. The literal translation is ‘God from the machine’. It’s a narrative device upon which a plot or problem is suddenly resolved by an action, object or event over which a character has no control.

Say, for example, you had to find ten thousand pounds to save an orphanage. Otherwise all the orphans would be put into some horrible detention centre run by Ainsley Harriott (Who is, I believe, potentially the most evil man in the world). You t...

Idealism, smothered in whine.

Eight hundred.

That’s the projected sales for Queen of the World within the first year. Eight hundred copies.

Personally I’m alright with that. Eight hundred is more than I expected to sell in twelve months. It’s a conservative figure, of course. As in, providing nothing goes disastrously wrong, we should be able to hit eight hundred sales. When I first started this blog I explained that my ambition was to have a book in print. Sales weren’t an issue for me, and if one person bought a copy and...

I’ll tell you what, and you’ll like it.

It’s been a long time, baby.

I’ve been busy with several things. The main two pursuits this past couple of weeks has involved the sequel to Queen of the World – sixty eight thousand words! – and the final set of edits for the finished novel. The manuscript was handed to a fresh set of eyes, and the results came back sparkling.

Sparkling in red, red pen.

See, being the kind of person I am (attractive, rich, great in bed), I immediately responded to these many, many suggested edits by a chap name...

Dwell.

How to place a word onto a page. Ever wonder what a letter is without the others? All shapes have a meaning. Rhythm isn’t solely for the audio. Beats aren’t just by the heart. You take a collection of your simple ideas and sculpt it into something that works. Sometimes it doesn’t. Occasionally you hit a spherical object you will caress with your thumb as you ponder just what, exactly, everything is about. In the darkest recesses of your mind you’ll stare up at the ceiling and come to terms wi...

I only want green M&M’s.

I’m on a blog tour next month. It’s kinda like being a rock’n’roll star, but without the tour van. Or the band. Or any instruments. Or live interactions with fans. Or a selection of so– Alright, so it’s not really like being a rock’n’roll star at all.

What it does give is a chance to meet people who might be interested in what I’m writing, and share my interest for what I read. Blogs and review sites are an excellent way to bring together folks who really have passion for books and communitie...

Future features for fabulous fantasy fans.

I’m bored.

In a few days I’ll be visiting Norway again, to celebrate the end of exams. Well, everyone else’s exams. I didn’t study anything. Perish the very thought. But it’s an excuse to get drunk and they’re a bunch of good guys ‘n’ gals, so it should be a laugh.

The timing of it is a bit weird, though. I took a week off of all things novel related and let my brain rest for a while. All those edits had turned my imagination into chop suey. Now I’m happy to get back into work on the sequel to...

That thesaurus is winking at me.

Whew.

The final edits for Queen of the World were completed on Tuesday. Well, Wednesday morning, around 4.30am. Sent off to Inspired Quill with associated notes and lovely colour-coded text for important points of discussion. It was a thing of beauty. By that I mean I was bleeding from the eyes.

I really enjoy editing but at the same time it winds me up something chronic. It’s not boring – nothing about writing bores me – but it’s just frustrating sometimes. Here’s a brief elaboration.

This blog...

I got 99 problems and a * ain’t one.

Here’s a weird one. I’m going to write about book reviews. It seems odd that I should do this before my first novel is published, but there’s a reason. Actually there are several reasons. I don’t want to write a blog post about reviews when I’m actually receiving them, because that could be seen as defensive and unprofessional. Furthermore I’m writing this as an observer, from the blog posts and reviews on sites such as Goodreads and Amazon which have had me slapping my forehead in bewilderme...