C.N. Faust's Blog, page 7
August 18, 2014
What I’ve Learned Rewriting a Seven-Year-Old Novel
Originally posted on Shannon A Thompson:
What I’ve Learned Rewriting a Seven-Year-Old Novel
As many of you know, I am currently rewriting November Snow – my very first publication. Although I started writing it when I was 11, it didn’t get published until I was 16. I took it off the shelves for many years, and it is basically off the shelves right now for many reasons, but the main reason is how unprofessionally it was handled. (Mainly because the publishing world has changed a lot since then, but we’ll get into that in a minute.)
So I’m rewriting this older tale, and I’m looking forward to day I can share it again, but today, I wanted to talk about all of the little lessons I’ve learned along the way.
1. I was a terrible writer, and I probably still am
Seriously. I hope I look back when I’m 59 on what I’m writing now with the…
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Weirdest Childhood Memory?
Hey guys, I’m here today (tonight, this morning? It’s 1:30 AM and I’m not counting anymore) wondering about your strangest childhood memory. I’ve been reading a lot about children who have past life memories and imaginary friends who turn out to be dead relatives they never met, and it all got me thinking about my own mundane childhood where nothing nearly as paranormal ever happened. Still, I wanted to share with you MY strangest childhood memory. When i was really young I used to carry around a little journal and a pen with me at all times for whenever inspiration struck. I would write little short stories about faeries or gnomes or French lovers throwing themselves off cliffs – all completely normal stuff. However, I distinctly recall that one day I woke up and for the life of me could not remember how to spell the word “of”. I tried to ask my mom how to spell it, but I couldn’t remember how to describe it, either. So I just walked around continuing on with my writing and whenever the need for the treacherous word arose, I concluded that it was spelled exactly like it sounded, “ov”. Eventually I made my mother read one of my short stories and she caught sight of my spelling. Naturally she was not pleased because I was homeschooled and she knew very well that she had taught me how to spell. My mistake was swiftly corrected. Yet it still remains one of my weirdest childhood recollections because I remember it being so sudden and confusing.
Possible explanations – alien abduction and brain probing?
Share YOUR strangest childhood memory! Respond on your own blog, comment here with the link, and I’ll reblog the post! I’m looking forward to hearing all ov your responses!
August 16, 2014
Insert Proof of Baby Status
I spent a lot of time making up for my summer of squalor last night. With my nose buried in a notebook (I have to do these things on paper or else I will never get them done) I finished sketching out almost the entire plot for The Bitch King. It’s about damn time. You would think Pharun would be more eager to get a book almost entirely to himself… but I think he is a little jealous of some new characters that are stepping in and grabbing my attention. You know, I’ve counted, and so far you guys get a grand total of 1…2… 9 new characters. I would give you a delicious teaser by saying that some of them fill in the empty antagonist spaces left by Encarz… but … who is to say that Pharun himself has not become the antagonist?
Shrukian says Pharun has always been the villain. Just ignore him. He’s grumpy.
And for those of you who don’t know – I posted this on my Facebook page a while back but I have not done a lot of follow up – I am going to be a father! And I have a little belly to prove it. When will this come to be, you ask? Well as usual it’s only nature’s guess, but the doctors are projecting February 10th, so we are anticipating a little Aquarius baby. Maybe I should celebrate by finding out which of my characters are Aquarius’ and doing a piece on them.
That’s why I’m trying so hard to get the Bitch King finished as soon as possible. Once the munchkin comes, who knows when I will have time to actually, steadily write for a while. Regardless, I am as happy as can be.
Seen below, proof of impending baby status.
Facebook, Though
Am I the only one who is having obscene amounts of trouble with my Facebook page? And by that I mean… my content barely reaches its target audience. I don’t know if I need more likes, more updates, or just more activity from both ends altogether. I’m not sure how to breathe new life into it. So any tips would be great. I would rather not pump money into “advertisements”, because of all the things I would like to do to promote my work that is not at the top of my priority list.
Unrelated, does anyone remember Myspace?
August 15, 2014
10% off the AoWD series – now until Monday!
School starts Monday for many … and so does the desperate need to escape from homework assignments and boring classes! Therefore I am offering the entire Age of Waking Death Series for 10% off each until Monday at midnight.
These books are classic cover, mass market paperback size, white paper. They are available on Lulu.com. If you are international and having trouble ordering from Lulu.com, don’t be afraid to reach out to me at writeme@cn-faust.com and we will work it out!
Links below – just click on the pictures! Happy reading!
The Dragon’s Disciples, 10.99, 9.89 The Heretic Priest, 6.99, 6.29 The Hollow Living, 6.99, 6.29
June 25, 2014
Why do I write LGBTQA fiction?
So, let’s talk for a minute about how … instead of writing my book … I’m going to write this blog post instead. #procrastination
I just wanted to talk about how / why I write for the LGBTQ community… and what I think some of the assumptions about my writing might be when people discover this.
First of all, I am part of the LGBTQ community. As both a trans male and an identifying pansexual, I have grown accustomed to both having to defend my identity and explaining it to those who are not familiar with my lifestyle. This is one reason that many of the characters (I think it’s safe to say… a good 96%) are either gay or bisexual, to boil it down to the simplest of terms. As the series continues and the characters evolve, a few of them have become more and more gender ambiguous as well. I also think this is important. Who wants cisgendered heterosexual characters ALL of the time?
I write for characters that are gay, bisexual, gender queer, gender fluid, asexual, transgendered, etc because I am ready for these characters to STOP becoming a novelty. They are not plot twists, they are not overbearing stereotypes, they do not exist as taboos. I’m tired of reading books where openly gay characters are flamboyant and lisping, almost always elves, almost always some sort of minstrel or assassin. Fantasy characters, just like people in real life, come in all shapes, sizes, colors, professions, and personalities. That is why Shrukian, the tall, broad, masculine soldier, exists alongside his slender, foppish, snarky brother Pharun. They both have very similar sexualities (Pharun has a preference towards men, but can enjoy a powerful woman. And Shrukian is the opposite). (Oh, by the way, maybe a spoiler alert). But guess what? Their sexuality is not the focal point of the books. That leads into my next point …
I want to see LGBTQ characters become more mainstream, and I want them to be as normal in fantasy as hetero cisgenders. As a teenager I would have loved to read the books that I am writing now. I wanted more characters with flexible sexualities and gender performances. Even in a frighteningly misogynistic society like Dragoloth, men are not looked down upon for bathing and wearing perfume. Meanwhile, I want to also include more pro-female societies. But while I am on my way to accomplishing this, I am quickly inserting more powerful female characters into the Age of Waking Death series (see Nerissa as my prime example, I love her to death).
People might assume that because I write gay fiction I might just have a lot of poorly written sex and romance scenes. But honestly, a lot of my sex happens off-camera, because I am much more interested in the political intrigue and family dynamics. My work is based on how people interact with each other and how societies can be changed when a single head falls.
I don’t write these books to be shocking or different, I write them because they are a reflection of my soul and my journey, and I always hope that there is someone out there who will be able to read between the lines and relate.
Bigger, better newsletter!
Hello, all! I am re-vamping my old newsletter, and it’s going to be bigger, better (and more visually appealing) than ever! It’s a great way to keep track of my book releases, signings, appearances, merchandise, and more! It’s also where I will send random comedy pieces (like my character Facebook posts) and anything fan related that comes my way such as drawings or poems. I want to share it all! So subscribe now, it’s easy! Just click on the banner or scan the QR code with your smartphone!
Too much yaoi fandom for Cy
I’ve decided that I would love to collaborate with an artist on a Yaoi style project tying back to the Age of Waking Death series. I used to think maybe I could scrape together the talent within myself to illustrate it all on my own … but alas, I have come to the conclusion that I am just not good enough for that. So if there are any artists out there interested in a joint project, let me know, I’d love to see what could happen when we put our heads together!
