U is for Undertone
Undertone refers to the underlying attitude, tone or theme which a work presents. Since the theme/attitude etc. is not stated directly in the work, it may sometimes pass unnoticed but when identified, it tends to deepen and enrich the reading experience. An example that comes to mind is from The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis. Lewis’ work contains several allusions to Christianity. A well-known example is the similarity between Aslan, the lion, who sacrifices himself to save one of the children. His resurrection further reinforces the allusion to Christ’s death and resurrection.
Undertone helps readers to understand the literary work better. It could even help to deepen characters especially if the undertones hint at particular motivation or underlying psychological aspects which are not openly discussed.
Are there any novels that made you reflect on them due to their undertones?
Research
These last few weeks I have re-immersed myself into a duology I worked on last year to tighten the first novel and take apart the second with the hope of writing a better story. Don’t ask how that’s going!! However, working on those texts have again involved doing some research, this time on the minerals excavated from around a volcano, and more importantly for my ms, how drilling for core samples is carried out. I learnt the following:
The drilling for core samples doesn’t use a normal drill bit, scaled up from the version that you have in the shed at home. Instead, scientists use 2m long hollow tubes that are driven into the earth by a large weight. As each segment is pushed into the ground, it forms a tube of material that is brought to the surface, a little like a biscuit cutter being pushed into dough. The core that is pulled up is recorded, and the driller hammers the next tube into the ground in the same hole. Each time, the drilling is going 2m deeper. The cores can be analysed, one after the other, to provide a continuous record reaching back in time. https://www.sciencelearn.org.nz/resources/643-reading-rock-core-samples
An aspect I enjoy about reading and writing is the bits of information the text encourages you to learn about!
Some embarrassing self-promo – ignore this section if you’re sick of it!
Dawn of Purple and Grey, book 1 in the Hyllethan Gifts series is available from Amazon as a paperback and as an ebook, as well as from Barnes and Noble and Books Depository. Days of Wind and Snow, book 2 is available as an ebook and a paperback from Amazon.
In the Inner Lands, there are three ways sixteen-year-old Shael can get herself and her family killed—by looking like the enemy; by working with the enemy; by becoming the enemy.
When sixteen-year-old Shael unknowingly helps a mortally wounded thief, he entrusts her with delivering three figurines to the lord of her castle. Too late, Shael discovers that the figurines were stolen from the Hyllethans, her country’s feared enemies. And since she cut her fingers on the figurines while handling them, she is now linked to them. Any breakage or pressure on the clay is felt on her flesh.
Despite her reluctance to aid the enemy, Shael teams up with three Hyllethans to retrieve the figurines and break the connection. Shael is caught in the tussle for the thrones of the two lands. To avoid becoming a pawn—or dangle from a hangman’s noose—she has to regain possession of the figurines and face the unsuspected secrets of her lost past.
Three thrones. Two power-hungry mages. One girl standing in their way.
Exiled in Hylletha, sixteen-year-old Shael longs to return to the land of her birth but her brother Iysel, the new, terrifying mage-king of the Inner Lands, wants her dead. Shael’s very existence threatens Iysel’s right to the throne since she is the holder of the magical Gift of Touch, which is traditionally held by the monarch.
To ensure peace, Theis, the young man Shael loves, goes to Iysel’s court to negotiate the reunification of Hylletha and the Inner Lands under one ruler. But when Shael’s young foster brother is abducted and held prisoner in the Inner Lands, Shael has only her limited knowledge of spellcraft to help her stay out of Iysel’s reach, rescue her foster brother and make sure Theis doesn’t bear the brunt of Iysel’s rage.
Complicating matters further, Iysel has won the unexpected support of their wily cousin—the son of the king of a neighbouring land and an extraordinary mage—who has his own reasons for wanting to get hold of Shael.
The stability of the three realms lies in the balance. Faced by intrigue and betrayal from all sides, Shael must choose between protecting the lives of those she loves or taking up her role as princess and heir to the thrones to safeguard the welfare of the people.
Night of Rites and Wraiths
Coming soon!
Caroline
