Konn Lavery's Blog: Posts from konnlavery.com, page 20

Podcast: Seed Me – Episode 13

Chapter 13 of Konn Lavery’s horror novel Seed Me. As with previous weeks, a new chapter will be shared on Thursdays. Enjoy the podcast below and share it around:

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After the investigation in the blue house, Logan and his friends know what must be done. They need to act fast before the seeds sprout. The ritual site is near, their time is short, will they make it?

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Craig DiLouie explores cult psychology in his new horror novel The Children of Red Peak

To finish 2020, we welcome back Bram Stroker Award-nominated author Craig DiLouie to discuss his latest novel, The Children of Red Peak, which is a horror novel following the life of three kids who are reunited years later after surviving a cult.

Last year Craig DiLouie joined us to chat about his dystopian thriller, Our War, and his dark fantasy, One of Us. Let’s welcome Craig back to the blog and learn about this creepy new story!

Welcome Back Craig Dilouie. For those who don’t know, mind giving a brief introduction of you and your writing?

It’s great to be a guest at your blog again, Konn! I’m an American-Canadian author of speculative fiction living in Calgary, Alberta. I’ve written more than 20 published novels in multiple genres. I’m probably best noted for my horror fiction, published by big publishers like Hachette and Simon & Schuster, and my WW2 fiction, which I self-publish. The road my writing career has traveled was long and hard but also filled with joy, a journey that has been both gratifying and humbling. I’m a very lucky man.

Congratulations on the launch of The Children of Red Peak. Tell us about the new novel.

Thank you! The Children of Red Peak is a psychological thriller with elements of cosmic horror, which thematically tackles topics like faith, family, memory, and trauma. One might snapshot it as a novel that plumbs psychological and cosmic horror in the human search for meaning. Author Peter Clines called it Heaven’s Gate by way of Stephen King’s IT, which I think is fairly apt.

This dark novel tells the story of a group of people who grew up in an isolated religious community—one that evolved into a dangerous cult—and survived its horrific last days. Years later, when one of the survivors commits suicide, the others come together to confront the past and the entity that appeared on the final night, which may or may not be God.

The story is told in two timelines, one in the past in which we see them as children growing up in the community and seeing it all go bad, and the other in the present where they are adults coping with the trauma of what they experienced. Gaining closure on this trauma and solving the mystery of how their parents died will bring them back to Red Peak and a startling discovery.

Why Cults?

Well, they’re obviously fascinating, and they’re fertile ground for horror because you have this group of seemingly happy people who are in lockstep obedience to a leader and doctrine and willing to do anything for them. But taking another step back, what I really wanted to write about was the human search for meaning, and how belief is a survival trait that can produce faith and moral achievement but also delusion and great evil. I wanted to tell a story about these themes through the lens of a religious group that is insular but relatively content, and how it logically slides into horror after its leader comes back from a trip and basically says, “I talked to God, he’s waiting for us at a mountain, we’re going to Heaven, and we’ll be tested when we get there.” They’re of course going to go, and if the tests are horrifying, they can’t be bad if they are from God.

The core idea for the story came from a reading of Genesis, in which God commands Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac as a burnt offering. God stays Abraham’s knife at the last second. Many people view this story as a wonderful testament about faith and obedience. Me, I wondered: What would the story sound like if it was told from Isaac’s point of view?

In the end, a cult was the perfect vehicle to capture these ideas and tell a story I hope readers will find emotional and captivating.

At the virtual book launch for The Children of Red Peak, you described wanting to dive into the minds of cultists and avoid the cliches. How did you approach this perspective and the research?

I absolutely wanted to avoid the cliches, as I think they’re overdone and don’t do justice to the rich, available themes.

I wanted to show the horror isn’t just in what happens in say the horrible tests at Red Peak, it’s even more so in how eagerly these otherwise good people undertake these tests based on the logic of their belief system.

I also wanted to avoid critiquing any specific religious beliefs. The group in the novel is a very evangelical, very strict apocalyptic Christian group, and their beliefs are presented with courtesy and taken at their word by the characters, who in the childhood held these beliefs. For me, the specific beliefs didn’t matter. Instead, I wanted to examine belief itself.

I also wanted to show how there are many what you might call “off brand” religious groups, but they are not cults. What makes a cult a cult is in the level of harm they do to their members and communities. I was really fascinated in how that level of harm might be justified. Also why people join groups like this, why they don’t leave if the group is in fact harming them, and how they cope if they do escape. The horror that happens in the heart and mind can be so much more powerful than other types of horror.

Did you use any reference material for the creation of the religious group, or is it purely fiction?

I did a lot of research about specific cults to learn about their manipulation techniques and what led them to self-destruct. Most of my research, however, dealt with the psychology of belief, trauma, and the appeal of being able to share a strong belief with a group.

The cover is subtle and disturbing with the hint of red and choice of photography. Does the upside-down forest have relevance to the story?

Lisa Marie Pompilio did the cover. She’d produced the trade paperback cover for my novel One of Us and the hardcover and paperback covers for Our War, both published by Orbit, an imprint of Hachette Book Group. When I found out I’d be working with her again, I was ecstatic, as she’s fantastic.

The cover she produced for The Children of Red Peak is perfectly creepy and enticing. The forest represents wilderness, the upside-down world conveys everything is out of kilter and broken, and the blood trail suggests a grisly event. Overall, it evokes mystery and invites readers to explore that mystery. I think she nailed it.

2020 is almost over – whew – what’s next for you?

Well, since it’s 2020, I’m going to say I’m going to go on surviving! Writing wise, I’m working up some new concepts to pitch to Hachette while producing another WW2 series for publication next year. I also started a shorter military fiction series set in the near future, which is in talks with several audio publishers. So 2020 put a stumble in my step, but overall I’m not letting it get me down. I’ll soldier on and keep writing as long as people keep reading.

Let’s thank Craig DiLouie for joining us to talk about his new novel, The Children of Red Peak!



Craig DiLouie’s Novels

http://craigdilouie.com

http://craigdilouie.com/book/the-children-of-red-peak/

Craig DiLouie on Social Media

https://www.facebook.com/craig.dilouie

https://twitter.com/CraigDiLouie

Craig DiLouie’s Biography

Craig DiLouie is an acclaimed American-Canadian author of literary dark fantasy and other fiction. Formerly a magazine editor and advertising executive, he also works as a journalist and educator covering the North American lighting industry. His fiction has been nominated for major awards, optioned for screen, and published in multiple languages. He is a member of the Imaginative Fiction Writers Association, International Thriller Writers, and the Horror Writers Association. He lives in Calgary, Canada with his two wonderful children.

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Aureate Rise

The Aureate Rise, led by High Priestess Valeryctus, has taken her sect deep into Mount Kuzuchi where her faithful attempt to unlock the holy unity of the mind, body, and spirit. Greth, a troubled priest, stays loyal to the light, which sends him through trials of fire, uncovering the dark history of the human faith.

Aureate Rise is December’s short story taking you into the dark fantasy world of Mental Damnation where secrets are unravelled. Enjoy the story in written form, the artwork, and in audio through the podcast with improv synths.

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Aureate Rise

My faith has never steered me dishonest as I obey the inner light that leads me. We all face trials of fire, testing our true nature. With guidance from above, we can walk-through unscathed. Decades of focus are needed to harness the powers of the light. The Heavenly Kingdoms no longer bless mere mortals with their holy powers. Centuries ago, they once did, creating the Paladins of Zeal. A grave error as man is incapable of handling such gifts while being bound by sin.

For humans to obtain a fraction of a paladin’s strength, we must earn it through vigorous determination and discipline. Of course, the words of power will never reach the feats of the former. Paladins matched the angels. A mortal corrupted by sin with tainted powers of light is deadly. Thus, it be, their eradication. After the Drac Lord Karazickle slaughtered almost all of their followers, we burned their false teachings and brought the focus on the worship of the true God. A single paladin remains alive and has proven themselves in the new Kingdom of Zingalg. They do not fight our faith in God nor enforce their old ways. This paladin simply serves. Our new religious hierarchy controls the ability a priest can have, preventing another rise of the Paladins of Zeal. We vow silence with our words of power unless granted by a higher priest.

Not all remains perfect in our faith in God. I pray. My brothers of faith believe in the true God. I . . . Our sect did not stray from the truth. Others have, altering the words written of the Son, foolishly forming unholy cults. No . . . we stayed faithful to the Scriptures, never bending to the temptations of evil. I pray . . .

High Priestess Valeryctus feeds our holy crusades not in the form of travel on steed but in the uncharted realms of our own psyches. Our mind, body, and spirit are intertwined into a unified harmony forming the holy triangle – naturally nearing the holism of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit reflected in his mighty creations. Perfectionism is all we can expect from our Lord. I pray. . .

The High Priestess had never strayed us afar. The creation of the Aureate Rise was forged from her vision granted to her by God himself. Need I reflect upon it again? She witnessed extraordinary heights for our spiritual intelligence if we learned to unify our three elements. Her blessed sight witnessed blackness all around . . . with a dim golden light guiding her closer to the truth, growing the more reinforced her faith was, until a glowing golden cross appeared with a hand in the centre with a thumb on each side – totalling six fingers – and an eye consuming the palm.

Her vision has led us to forge the Aureate Rise taking refuge in Mount Kuzuchi, below its snowy peaks, where we have locked ourselves inside an old forgotten chapel. Deep isolation is required to venture into one’s psyche and bridge the gap between the three elements. High Priestess Valeryctus has ordered us to descend to the basement, locking us in. In dark solitude, we can champion our unity without the distraction of sin. Our determination is enforced by the Aureate Rise Shield, guarding the locked door to the surface.

The High Priestess remains above, focusing on ancient literature and codices that the Aureate Rise Shield crusade for, hoping to gain more insight into the chasms of our souls. The Shield are no priests, clerics, but not disciplined in the light. My brothers and I report the discoveries we make about the connection of the mind, body, and spirit, speaking through the cracks of the locked stone door to the Shield, then they report to High Priestess Valeryctus.

The mind is a terrible place. I pray. These thoughts – or trials – are purely my own. I once wished that it was evil entering my mind, tempting me . . . now, I am not so sure. I pray . . . Perhaps the last letter I received from my old colleague, Dr. Alsroc, have fractured the barriers I have built around my fortitude. His message describes attempting to solve a brain disease known as Mental Damnation. This . . . disease . . . Pierces the mind and sends them to hell, where the unfortunate is ultimately consumed by the fallen souls, burning for eternity.

I wish to dismiss Dr. Alsroc’s letter! Yet, the words have raised concern that I cannot shun. The disease victims are depicted as crossing from our world and into the afterlife during their dreams, returning the next day with tainted visions of the unholy. Eerily enough, the Aureate Rise and our High Priestess are guiding us through the depths of our own mental states. We eat next to nothing, we sleep little, and pray for days on end. I felt weak – so hungry . . . thirsty. The trials . . . how many years had gone by? We have no muscles, and our skin is so pale. Our hair has grown far past churchly formality.

I ponder for hours, prayer after prayer, attempting to unravel what lies deep within myself. These heights that the High Priestess described seem to be a fool’s dream. Are these visions from God? Or has she turned mad, bending to darkness, and enslaving us – and for what? This I do not know, and so I ponder. Are these more temptations of evil? Is this my own sin, jealousy of what the High Priestess has created? There’s reason to feel such ways. She’s the higher rank, commanding us, and capable of far greater words of power than I.

Dr. Alsroc’s note has infected my mind, leaving me with uncertainty. I have my doubts about it merely being a brain disease. He described his last patient, Frenan Soulstone, as having similarities hauntingly foretold in an ancient book in High Priestess Valeryctus’s study. Yes, I confess my actions of witnessing the surface, proving me disloyal to the Aureate Rise’s mission. I pray . . . I ponder.

I believed the holy light unlocked the basement door, as at the time I could not fathom any other reasoning for why it opened. None of my brethren noticed whom were entranced in deep meditation. Atop of the stone stairwell, I could hear my name being called . . . Greth . . . Greth, come to the light. Perhaps it was a trial of fire that I ignored. Regardless, I believed it to be the holy light and crept up to the surface of the chapel. Fresh air filled my lungs, and the torch lights nearly blinded me . . .

The light led me straight to High Priestess Valeryctus’s study, where she was not present – possibly another miracle. My hand ran across the long black marble table. Papers scattered its surface. The first I noted were historical documents, stained of blood – whose I am uncertain – that accused the church of shifting to false prophets, straying humanity from the truth of the Creator – renamed to the true God. The author claimed that the Paladins of Zeal held knew the way before the Holy Book was rewritten.

These archived documents accurately describe what all holy men fear in the back of their minds as their mouths remained silent. I am victim of this. The truth is not worth the loss of life, and God will guide his loyal followers to salvation. Seeing these archive notes with the naked eye changes this perspective. All I could think about was exposing High Priestess Valeryctus to the church.

Further on the table were more papers that eventually took me to the far end where a large codex rested. It was the size of a small child. This massive tomb was open, letting me see the black pages and golden ink. These pages were so black that all light ceases to reflect on them. It was impossible to tell where a page ended, and another began. I could touch it and move the page, feeling an unholy power channel into my veins.

The book itself is bound by a stone exterior, and I can only imagine the codex’s weight. If it weren’t for the papers around this monolith, I would not know its name nor be able to read the contents inside. They were the High Priestess’s notes, attempting to transcribe the ancient language. On top of her papers wrote the words: The Book of Consulo.

The words in this codex are most unsettling. Its language is of unknown origin. With the transcription notes, I read some of the texts found within the pages. The Book of Consulo claims to have the power to undo all creationism – a great reset, one might say. In the wrong hands, and a small sliver of this book’s knowledge, it can be used for necromancy. If a mortal dies, it can revert it – an unholy monstrosity.

The Book of Consulo and Dr. Alsroc’s letter have crossover phrases that troubled me to my core. This Mental Damnation speaks of an afterlife, a place known as Dreadweave pass, where the dead have been reanimated to serve a fallen god. Not the holy God, some other evil god known as the Weaver, who is locked in a prison within this realm. I believed it once nonsense until this book . . .

Both the codex and the letter use phrases such as the Creator, Dega’Mostikas’s Triangle, and the Truce of Passing. The transcriptions from the Book of Consulo never mention the Son of God or the Holy Spirit, nor God himself. Where could have the Aureate Rise Shield found such a book? The High Priestess must know of dark deeds at play. . . the Paladins of Zeal spoke truths of the old faith.

My view into this codex was brief, as the Shield had returned with more loot, and I could not be caught for such treason. I hastily escaped from the study and hurried to the basement. Unfortunately, the lack of food and muscles in my legs caused me to clumsily collapse.

The Aureate Rise Shield seized me. I began to pray for strength, knowing that torture and punishment were soon to follow for such disobedience. The Shield took me to High Priestess Valeryctus, beyond the study and into her private chamber made of black stone and marble. She knelt at the end of the chamber where a gold statue stood, shimmering in the torch light. The sculpture was the same cross seen in her vision – with a two-thumbed hand and an eye in the centre.

The High Priestess approached me, with her long black-and-gold gown draping against the marble floor. Her stride was calm and expression unfazed by the fact that I have deliberately disobeyed our sect’s purpose. I did not lose my gaze into her purple eyes. Beyond their surface, I could clearly see the drunkenness of power. At that moment, I lost faith, not in the holy light, but in humanity. The documented truths expose centuries of deceitful spitting, claiming to lead humanity out of the paladins’ tyranny, have shown me that we were all fools.

High Priestess Valeryctus asked if I believed God guided me to the study so I could feast my eyes upon the historical documents and the Book of Consulo. I told her I believed the holy light did. She laughed at me; I was puzzled until she said she personally unlocked the door, wanting one whose faith was troubled to come forth and seek the truth behind the Aureate Rise. Through her mighty power, she transcribed words into my mind that tempted me to leave the basement.

The High Priestess ordered the Aureate Rise Shield to murder me. In a flood of clarity, I finally understood what she was attempting to do. She wanted a body – and I fell into her plan. The church would not question a disloyal priest’s death. Yes, then she would be free to do what she wished. The Book of Consulo. Necromancy. Power.

The Aureate Rise Shield drew their swords. I prayed to the light, calling upon holy powers that we deemed not speak. I broke my vow of silence and summoned a prayer of protection. The light effortlessly absorbed the failed strikes from the Shield’s swords.

I spoke more words of power – of truth – smiting the minds of the Aureate Rise Shield. They fell to the ground, dropping their weapons, locked in repent for their immoral actions. With one word, I could release them. I did not. Their minds ran around and around, reliving the sins they committed until their psyches collapsed under their own weight. Their limbs fell limp as blood seeped from the mouths, nostrils, and ears.

The High Priestess’s words of power have been bent to her will through the Book of Consulo. Her enslaved words affected my protection prayer. The fortitude shields I built crumpled, and her false smite smeared my thoughts. I attempted to speak a word of power! High Priestess Valeryctus finished hers first and the unholy speech scorched my face, melting half of it away. My mind gave in and blood oozed out of my remaining facial orifices. I, too, fell as the Aureate Rise Shield did. I wish that it ended there, and I was brought to the golden gates of the Heavenly Kingdoms. The Book of Consulo is more real than I could have ever dreamed . . .

High Priestess Valeryctus leaned over my dying body as the last breath of air left my lungs. My soul began to rise; I could see my body. She spoke words in an ancient tongue . . . Pronunciations that I could not attempt to mimic myself. The power to undo creationism flowed through her vowels as energy channelled out of her black-and-gold glowing fingertips and onto my corpse. The black-and-gold stream of . . . liquid defeated all worldly rules, by hovering over my body like a snake about to feast. It seeped into my mouth, eyes, and ears, fueling the body with new blood.

My soul was pulled back down, locking me into the dead flesh. I was alive again! My hands pushed me up from the cold marble – which I could barely feel – until I rose to look at the High Priestess directly in her eyes. I have never seen such a malevolent grin of joy spread across someone’s face. I . . . I was living, yet, I wasn’t. My heart failed to pump, and my skin was stiff. The blood is new. It’s thick and made of the black-and-gold energy. She repeated this process for the men I had killed, and they rose from the ground.

High Priestess Valeryctus deemed us the first of her new order. I wish to resist. My soul is bound to hers, and her will is my action. The Book of Consulo has granted her powers meant for gods, not mortals. Her first command for us was to strangle the remaining priests. I was not in control of my hands as I squeezed the life out of each of my brethren, watching their helpless eyes beg for mercy. Those that fought back with words of power were eradicated with my own tainted words – infused with might from the Book of Consulo. Then, the High Priestess converted my brethren into the living dead, growing her army.

I do not know what her end goal is, as she does not share it with anyone. She obsessively studies The Book of Consulo as we await her command at the gate of the church, under the pouring rain. We do not eat, we do not sleep, and we do not tire. The words she’d learned from that unholy codex has converted us into a horror that only a warrior of light can destroy. Hope is never lost, as light always guides us, and we simple priests may have fallen victim to treachery, but there is truth. The light led me to witness the Book of Consulo. In time, no secrets stay buried forever – that, is what I pray . . .

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Podcast: Seed Me – Episode 12

Chapter 12 of Konn Lavery’s horror novel Seed Me. As with previous weeks, a new chapter will be shared on Thursdays. Enjoy the podcast below and share it around:

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Logan and Janet have convinced Jake to help them find a solution to their problem. They’re off to revisit that sketchy blue house. What kind of horrors could be inside? It’s time to find out what these harvesters hide.

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Podcast: Seed Me – Episode 11

Chapter 11 of Konn Lavery’s horror novel Seed Me. As with previous weeks, a new chapter will be shared on Thursdays. Enjoy the podcast below and share it around:

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Logan wakes up after the fatal attack from the Vicky look-alike. The police find him. A doctor tells him he is okay, and may have a cold. A cold . . . No one is listening to Logan. He has to get Janet. They must deal with the seeds themselves and save their own skin before it is too late.

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Crafting A Villain

Crafting a villain is an exciting part of writing a book. Like creating all characters, you develop a relationship with these fictional beings.  Crafting a villain is a tricky one because you want them to impact the reader negatively. Now, if you take it too far, the villain becomes alienated, and they become fake. The villain will be unrelatable. At that point, you’ve got yourself a real corny antagonist. In this blog post, we will look at some inspiration and concepts to think about when creating a convincing villain.

A villain can come in many forms, like another human being. They can be a monster, a group of people, a kingdom, the environment, or even the protagonist themselves. There’s a lot to consider. Ultimately it depends on the premise of your story. Sometimes you aren’t sure who the villain is. You learn who they are while writing the draft. Here they can grow and evolve. The villain – or antagonist – is the opposite of your protagonist and ultimately should serve as an obstacle for your story’s hero.

Know Your Premise – the Skeleton for Crafting a Villain.

If you’re not sure what you’re writing, it’s challenging to think of who – or what – the villain is going to be. There are many forms they can take, so it’s essential to go back to your premise and think about what you’re writing first. Then the villain will reveal themselves. Are there more than one? Or are you focusing on a single antagonist?

Sometimes you come up with a character that is an exciting concept, and you’re unsure where they fit in. The character can live in your head for a while, or you jot it down in your notes, and somewhere down the line, that character will find a home. Other times, because of that villain, the premise is born. If you happen to have an antagonist in mind before your story, let the antagonist help shape the story alongside the protagonist.

Villains Poison the Protagonist’s Inner and Outer Journeys

Now, on the flip side, let’s think about what your protagonist is attempting to achieve. Are they chasing the love of their life? Or are they trying to obtain a secret treasure or save the world? Or perhaps they are dealing with a change in their life – like a divorce. There’s are plenty of obstacles for your protagonist to overcome.

This concept can bleed into making your protagonist the villain too. That’s where the inner journey of the main character is critical to your story. If the villain is an external threat, think about how that villain will become problematic for the protagonist. If they aren’t directly affecting the protagonist’s life, the villain is obsolete in the story.

Make Readers Love the Villain

Here’s the fun part of crafting a villain – make your readers love them. A good villain should be likeable, and in some cases, even relatable. Juggling the relatable and hate ideas is trickier than stating it. Let’s look at some different types of villains and ask ourselves questions about making the reader adore them.

Crafting a Villain – The Types of Evil



A Creature

Creating a likable monster has a far more significant impact on your reader rather than some cliché creature that we’ve all seen before. Monsters tend to have a lot of physical traits about them. Sometimes they have abilities as well that make them a threat. Design the monster. Then, decide how much you are willing to share with the reader. A good monster villain doesn’t always have to shine in the light. You can use the reader’s imagination to fill in the blanks. Let them attempt to unravel what this creature is. Mystery can go a long way when you’re creating a monster.

The Human Element

If your villain is more sophisticated than that, we toss in the human element. No one believes that they are evil. People do horrible things and justify their actions for them. There are countless examples in the real world.

Ask yourself: what kind of life would it take to make someone grow into the shoes of your villain? You might even have to go back to their childhood. Do a character study to understand who they. The study doesn’t have to be in the story, but you must know who your villain is to believable dialogue and actions.

Environmental

Using the elements as a villain gives you some leeway in developing anything sophisticated. You can get quite creative with the environment by making your protagonist struggle. Effort can keep your reader hurrying to the next page. Think of doomsday scenarios or stranded-on-an-island type environments. Environments are how the protagonist attempts to overcome the odds of the harsh nature.

The Hero Gone Bad

We lightly touched on this before. What if your protagonist is the villain? As we talked about before, we want to bring in the human element, but we give further details to the reader. We follow the protagonist’s journey and see first-hand how the character develops into something horrific. The hero-gone-bad is often known as the anti-hero.

The Friend

Another interesting villain concept is a friend. Perhaps the reader has no idea who the villain is. Eventually, a supporting character turns on the hero. Woah! The evil friend acts similarly to the anti-hero concept, except there is heavy tension between these two characters.

Groups

Another exciting type of villain is a group of people, a kingdom, a country, a rival sports team, a religion – literally anything that is an organized entity. Here you can design the group’s motives. Think about the hierarchy of the entity. Is there a single leader? Is it a council? What are their end goals, and how much power do they already have?

Make it a Combo-Fun-Pack Villain

The examples above constrain villains into neat and pretty little categories. Stories don’t have to be like that. Why not include a group where the hero eventually joins them and becomes the villain? Or a creature feature where they are quite intelligent (Frankenstein?) There are endless possibilities when creating a story. It’s why writing is so much fun – we get to push the limits and explore entirely new concepts. Mishmash the villain into something exciting. The villain can be technology, or an alien, an ancient underground group of mole people. Ultimately you want the villain to be believable, so your reader enjoys the story and doesn’t put the book down.

Too Many Combos! Their Power is Unstoppable!

Now, we can’t just ponder how fantastic the villain is or how in-depth they are. You don’t want your antagonist to overpower the protagonist in the story and have readers forget about the main character. You want the protagonist to be the focal point. What are your villain’s weaknesses?

Based on some of the categories above, or a combination of them, what are the opposites of their strengths? A villain’s weakness gives your protagonist hope. It is then up to you to decide when the reader and the protagonist discover this if they ever learn how to overcome this villain.

Go on a Date with your Villain

Crafting a villain is as much work as creating an interesting protagonist. If you don’t care about the villain, neither will your readers. Take the time to get to know your villain. It’s like starting any new relationship. You have to break the ice, get to know them, and eventually know the inner workings. Then you can finish their sentences – because you’re the writer.

Summary on Crafting a Villain

There we have it, some ideas on crafting a villain. There many ways of crafting a villain, and you can do plenty of research into designing a convincing one. Read some psychology essays or biology books. You can have a lot of fun crafting a villain. There are many factors to play with, like their personality, what they look like, their abilities, and their weaknesses.

Hopefully, these ideas spark your creativity and push you in the right direction. Find more writing ideas on the blog under Writing.

If you have something to share, feel free to drop it in the comments. The more we help each other write a story, the better books there will be all around.

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Podcast: Seed Me – Episode 10

Chapter 10 of Konn Lavery’s horror novel Seed Me. As with previous weeks, a new chapter will be shared on Thursdays. Enjoy the podcast below and share it around:

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Logan researches the symptoms he and Janet are experiencing only to find nothing online. His good friend Skip takes him out for a nature walk and a blaze. He still doesn’t buy any of the 420 Draining cases or the weird old man. At least he always has Logan’s back, for they’ll need it. The forest isn’t safe…

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Podcast: Seed Me – Episode 09

Chapter 9 of Konn Lavery’s horror novel Seed Me. As with previous weeks, a new chapter will be shared on Thursdays. Enjoy the podcast below and share it around:

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Logan and Janet wait for the Farmers Market to close to see where this mysterious old man goes. He’s keeping secrets, and they need answers about these seeds. The two have no idea what they are in for.

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Backlogging Saviour

Do you know what is super effective and efficient for writing? Backlogging. Seriously, it has been a major lifesaver for this whole month of November. The life of a contractor rides highs and lows, and I am no exception. There’s that old cliché – when it rains, it pours – which is super accurate when freelancing. The backlogging Saviour can create the illusion of consistency in a writing career.

Welcome to another edition of Unprocessed Thoughts

If you know me personally or have been consistently reading the unprocessed thoughts, you know that I have repeatedly mentioned the contract life’s highs and lows. You can go for weeks on end with hard crunch times and little to no writing completed. Let’s not even talk about marketing or selling because that is entirely off the table when there are too many gigs to take care of.

Of course, after a giant rush, there are the low periods, and you better have some cash saved up for your going to be toast. For example, September and October were not the usual crazy ramp-up leading to winter. Instead, I was blessed with many half days of contract work, which gave me plenty of time to focus on writing, marketing, and the new audiobook podcast.

Deep down in my gut, the freelancer instinct told me that the beautiful half days of work were not going to last. Oh no, I knew for sure. I’m going on 6 ½ years freelancing. The cycle goes through the same patterns. It wasn’t until last year I started to get a better handle on all the chaos.

The Backlogging Saviour

With my supernatural power of foreseeing the future, I spent plenty of time backlogging blog posts and the audiobook podcast in the fall. I also set up some promo advertising for mail-outs scheduled in December – there’s thinking ahead!

Yes, that means all the posts I’ve done in the past four so weeks of been backlogged. This includes the seed me chapters on the podcast, the I Love You short story, and the time management post. It paved the way for me to focus on the contract work. As with all contract work, they tend to fall under the cliché of mutating scopes and additional needs, and tight deadlines. The changes are expected, and anyone who is seasoned in the contract world knows it all too well.

Freelancing Wit

People burn out fast! Freelancing in the design and web world is not exactly easy nor forgiving. You have to continually be learning new trends and new technologies while running a business to be competitive in the ever-changing industry. I’ve seen people come and go in the short time that I’ve been freelancing. It’s crazy, and I can understand why people get out of it.

Yes, being on your toes every day to get projects done, meet deadlines, attend meetings, find new work while you’re doing the work you currently have and doing all the paperwork is a lot to juggle. Then, if you’re off your rocker, you have other ambitions as well – like trying to create some kind of writing career.

NaNoWriMo – Writing into the Dark

The backlogging Saviour has also blessed me with the ability to participate in NaNoWriMo this year. The last time I participated was in 2018 while working on The White Hand, a Rutherford Manor novel. I genuinely do like participating in NaNoWriMo. Unfortunately, I can’t do it every year due to my publishing schedule and the varying amount of contract work I have on the go.

Thankfully, this year was different. For the first time in many books, I made the bold decision to write without an outline. I had a rough premise idea going on from the Octobers short story, Ash, and decided to run with it. As always, I use speech to text technology to spitball the story for the first draft.

Speaking out a story without an outline wasn’t as strange as I thought it was going to be. Most of the short stories I write aren’t outlined and are spitballed on the first draft. I dipped into Dean Wesley Smith’s process described in his book Writing Into the Dark. It’s like pansting but with some extra details.

With NaNoWriMo, I didn’t follow the process strictly. It was about getting those words in. I rushed some parts that need fixing. If I didn’t have so many crazy deadlines with contract work, I would have spent more time going back and cycling, as Dean Wesley Smith puts it, instead of hammering out those words.

That’s okay, as I’ll go back and fix the draft. It is sitting just over 50,000 words now, and about 75% complete the actual story. Ash is an interesting concept that I have been toying around with in my head for 12 years. It’s not just one book. It will probably be a series with a much larger story. But first, I need to finish up that heart manuscript from 2018. It is long overdue and needs real justice. Then who knows what will come in 2021.

Almost done 2020

We’re almost at the finish line for 2020! And as with every year, I am taking holiday time off to let my mind wander, read, and unwind. This is what I am working towards. I am vigorously grinding through the contract work so that I can take this time off. Somehow, I am squeezing in some writing here and there, but I certainly wouldn’t have been able to make it far if I didn’t backlog.

The backlogging Saviour is the true hidden hero when one is so bold to be proactive.

Beer Note: Van Honsebrouck Brewery Ingelminster Kasteel

For this month, I tried a Belgian beer. I think it’s supposed to be a hoppy beer, and it isn’t quite as hoppy as the Canadian ones I have had. Personally, that is a flavour that I prefer, less hoppy. It’s almost like a pale ale and is quite tasty. The Van Honsebrouck Brewery Ingelminster Kasteel sits at 6.5% and is labelled as strong beer. I got one but could certainly have a second.

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Prairie Gothic Anthology – Book Launch!

Come join us for the virtual launch of the Prairie Gothic Anthology! I am pleased to be a part of this Canada prairies anthology focused on Gothic fiction.

When? Monday, November 30, 2020 at 7 PM UTC-07 – 8:30 PM UTC-07

Where? Online

Hosted by Prairie Soul Press

Register at Owl’s Nest Books

Featuring the talents of:

P.J. VernonChris CarolanChris MarrsCalvin JimTaija MorganKonn LaveryStacey KondlaRhonda ParrishSarah L. JohnsonRob BoseMike ThornMarty ChanElizabeth WhittonJim Jackson

Help us celebrate the release of the FIRST anthology featuring gothic stories set on the Canadian prairies.Readings! – Games! – Thrills & chills!

Register at Owl’s Nest Books

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