The Switch Over

Articles about writing are prolific on the Internet. Tons galore of professional writers offering their techniques and advice ad redundancy, and add the refrain “every writer’s journey is different”. Pile on the memoir-esque writings on writing (mine included) and saturation comes to mind.

It’s all wonderful, yet there is no pull there for me. There is no true willingness to contribute to it all, simply because I haven’t anything new to offer… yet.

I’ve always just wanted to write stories. Since quitting four years ago, a lot of ground has been lost with that. Lately, the struggle with some short stories, a novella, and the plotting of a novel, has all been going so very slow. My boyfriend assures me that both speed and discipline will pick up, as long as I stay focused and stick with it.

Stick with what exactly?

Which brings us to this post.

I’d like to switch over to fiction for a while–stick to it like cement glue, until a certain number of projects are finished.

Usually, what a writer likes to read gives some indication of what influences their stories, so a little peek into my tastes in fiction may help to alleviate future feelings of surprise or trepidation while reading my work. A brief glance at the nearest bookshelf:

Complete works of Shakespeare; complete works of William Blake; Tales of Edgar Allen Poe; Grim’s Grimmest; Tanith Lee’s Biting the Sun, Tales of the Flat Earth and a dozen other titles; The Spiderwick Chronicles; Dalton Trumbo’s Johnny Got His Gun; Ray Bradbury’s The Illustrated Man; a dozen of Neil Gaiman’s Sandman graphic novels; three old, out-of print Weird Tales magazines; The Complete History of Jack the Ripper; and The Annotated Alice (Adventure’s in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass).

The other bookshelf is dedicated to paperback and hardcovers, an assortment of horror and fantasy on the top shelves, and below that spiritual, meditation, wisdom, science and occult non-fiction books.

And scattered through out all of this are anthologies of erotica short stories, a few works by the Marquis de Sade, and Christine Freehan’s Carpathian romance novels (loaned to me by my aunt and which I’m still reading them all nearly a year later).

What does all of this mean? From my standpoint, expect a lot of fantasy-good weirdness sprinkled with darkness, horror, sci-fi, drama, mystery, romance and erotica, and whatever else is required to tell the story.

From your standpoint, this might mean a whole load of crazy… Like I said, whatever is required to tell the story.

Speaking of which…

One of the stories currently underway–and a first priority–is a potential novella first draft for publication only at Imagination Unbound.

The work is titled Ule the Unfurled. (That’s pronounced oo-lay.)It’s predominantly fantasy, with dark bits and humourous bits, about a young goddess-like woman who, in the pursuit of happiness, loses herself then rediscovers herself along the way.

What else should you expect?

1. Longer posts, as each one will mark a section or mini-chapter.
2. Possible infrequency of posting. (Although I will work toward consistancy with publishing regularly, life does get in the way some times.)
3. Perhaps, a rougher quality of writing at times, a common feature of first drafts.

In the end, when all is written, Ule the Unfurled with be edited and revised, then re-published as a free downloadable novella peddled for possible publication.

At this point, I humbly ask for your patience, and should you enjoy Ule the Unfurled, please tell everyone you know!