BOOK TWO PROGRESS REPORT

The first 50,000 words of book two, The Wild War, have been completed. I’m sorry it’s taken me this long. There have been some needless distractions along the way. Part of the reason The Wild War is taking longer to write is because SoaS left every character geographically isolated from each other. This means that every character now has to stand on their own. This is a good thing, because it allows me to push myself as a writer in new and exciting ways while I try and avoid Middle Book Syndrome. I’ve said before that tWW will be better than SoaS in every way and I mean it. I’m about 1/3rd of the way through and I hope to have The Wild War released by the end of the year.  

“I want to turn Voskeer into a city of the future, unlike anything which has come before it. Let our technological achievements and culture shine brighter than ever, while our soldiers push the Hunt back into the Nixus fields.” -Queen Minerva Roselock, Sins of a Sovereignty 

At the end of SoaS, in response to the Wild Hunt’s stolen new weapons, Queen Roselock decides it’s time to give Eldred free reign to remake Amernia’s capital as he sees fit. This was one of the biggest choices in my book, and it’s one that was easily overlooked among the character death and tears. Although mostly, her decision was in response to the invention of these… 

So far I’ve written….  

A prologue/3500 words-This couldn’t be more different than the opening of SoaS. That’s all I’ll say. 

Three Salus chapters/20,000 words- Yeah, Douchebag McGraw is a POV now. Who knows, he might grow as a character. Or he could not. I’m really happy with how these chapters turned out, and they were an absolute blast to write. Expect to be surprised. 

Three Queen chapters/17,000 words-Roselock has grown considerably since the last book, and her partnership with Eldred, as well as her relationship with Joseline, have softened her. This is, so far, a much more optimistic book than SoaS. Voskeer (the capital) is heavily influenced by New Orleans, my favorite American City.  

Like this, with added high fantasy and steampunk elements.(Yes that is Princess and the Frog concept art. I have a wide variety of influences.) As the industrial age begins, Eldred’s machines have become commonplace within the capital, and not everyone’s pleased with the new changes. 

One little Joseline chapter/8,000 words- Joseline is a surprising character, and I have grand plans for her. 

And the epilogue/2,000 words- Mmmmmm sequel bait. 

 I leave you with this. Keep in mind, until it’s published it will be re-written 12423423423423765 times. 

“Look Auntie,” said Joseline, pointing to the black night sky. “A shooting star.”

High above, a shimmering yellow streak raced through the sky. It spun once before plummeting downwards, trailing sparkling yellow fire as it fell. The sentinels formed a shield wall around the Queen and Joseline, as a golden hummingbird came to hover before them, its eyes glowing blue with flame.

“Hello, again,” said the hummingbird. “Do you know who I am?”

“Move aside,” the Queen ordered the sentinels. ”If he wanted to kill us he would. I know who you are, Calcifer.” 

- Excerpt from The Wild War, Draft one.

Also check out this survey post I did. It deserves more love.