The Dilemma of Extracts

It's Launch Party Day! And since there's one more chance to plug it, I will once more declare that the launch party for DEATH SCENE is happening at 6:30pm tonight, at The George pub, The Strand, London. All welcome.

In order to prepare for the launch party I spent much of last night preparing the extract I will be reading out. In fact, I have two extracts to read this week, because I will also be reading one for the Edin Road Blog Radio show on Thursday.

I find choosing extracts immensely difficult, especially when they are to be read aloud. It can't be too long or you will bore the audience. It can't be too short, or they will wonder why they bothered. You want a part of the novel that's exciting, and will grip people, but you don't want to give too much away.

And then there is the question of how to read it. Even the most exciting extract will sound boring if it's read in a flat monotone. I have a tendency to 'gabble' my words sometimes - I don't want to do that whilst reading the extract, or the audience won't be able to follow it.

Yes, there is a knack to choosing extracts. I hope what I have chosen to read aloud will fit the bill, and will intrigue my audience sufficiently to make them want to go and read the rest of the book!

Actually, my biggest fear about tonight is not actually standing up and reading aloud before an audience. My time doing amateur dramatics helped me ovecome that particular fear. No, my biggest fear is that no one will turn up. I'm not nearly famous enough to have a huge crowd of people lining up for my autograph. I'm still working on building my brand as a writer, and I know notoriety is still a very long way up the ladder.

I talked to the pub manager earlier today to confirm everything was set for tonight. He actually had me down as 'Sue Townsend' and was expecting the author of the Adrian Mole books to turn up. Perhaps I should have adopted that mistake to plug my launch - I'd at least be guaranteed a large crowd....

Of the Earth, Venus, and Pentacles

It's still Tuesday, right? (Checks clock.) Yep. A couple hours at least. :-)

So I got feedback on the Zaphkiel Project, my first novel and, in a sense, an experimental project. The result? Good and bad news. Good? My editor liked the premise. The bad? Not quite ready for prime time. But even that's good. I recently came across some astronomical information that could really lend some weight to the story.

The transition of Venus, which occurs every 243 years, recently took place in 2004 and will again in 2012 (eight year intervals). Hello, time lock! But even more interesting, I found this from The Pentagonal Cycle of Venus http://www.lunarplanner.com/HCpages/Venus.html

"Because the Earth moves 584 Earth days...before the two planets align, each alignment occurs about 215.6 (degrees) further than the previous one...As this process continues, five unique Venus-Earth locations are created in the ecliptic. The result is a pentagonal synodic series that takes about eight years and which consists of five synodic cycles..."

Pentacles play an important role in this story but it was only until today I realized I could tie them in with this Earth-Venus synodic cycle.

Not only that but Lucifer, a character in the Zaphkiel Project, is also the Latin name for the morning appearance of the planet Venus. I knew this from previous research but not about the pentagonal synodic cycles. Talk about a serendipitous situation. So excited to see if I can implement this.

Magical MacGuffins

I love a fun story with a great MacGuffin. What is a MacGuffin, you ask? Let me tell you.

The term is believed to have been popularized by Alfred Hitchcock. It refers to anything, be it a person, goal, idea, or thing, that drives the plot. But it's just a tool so it doesn't really matter what it is, and in fact can be interchangeable. For instance one of the easiest examples are the Indiana Jones movies. The lost ark of the covenant in Raiders, those glowy stone things in Temple of Doom, and the Holy Grail in The Last Crusade are all MacGuffins. (There was no crystal skull movie. That is not the Indiana Jones sequel you're looking for.)

Some other examples are the Maltese Falcon, the travel papers in Casablanca, the target in any and every heist movie, and one of my favorites - the briefcase in Pulp Fiction. Quentin Tarantino has said he didn't know or care what was in that briefcase because it didn't matter. I like to think it contained the soul of Marcellus Wallace.

There are two big examples in the Harry Potter stories: the horcruxes and the Deathly Hallows. Although in a lot of cases a MacGuffin can be interchangeable with another, I think it's safe to say there was one horcrux and one Deathly Hallow that were vitally important to the story and how the ending played out.

MacGuffins can make for an easy plot device but that doesn't mean you can be a lazy storyteller. The Indiana Jones movies were fun action-adventure stories but what really kept audiences coming back was Indy himself. He was a great character, one that audiences enjoyed spending time with. Same thing with Sam Spade and Rick from Casablanca. There has to be more to the story than just some neat antique statue or mysterious briefcase. A MacGuffin can be a lot of fun but your readers have to care about the characters and want to follow them on whatever journey that MacGuffin takes them on.

I've always wanted to write something fun with a really cool magical MacGuffin. When I started writing my web serial The Bradbury Institute, I knew there would be a MacGuffin, maybe more than one. I'm starting with a grimoire because I love the idea of a dangerous book. The first story is even named after the first MacGuffin, a grimoire called The Key of Darkness. I did some research about some ancient grimoires and came up with a few ideas for a fictional one of my own. That's not the only MacGuffin in the story. There's another one that definitely qualifies as "warm and fuzzy" but I'm not going to tell you more than that.

My two favorites are the briefcase from Pulp Fiction, and the final horcrux from the Harry Potter stories. Do you have a favorite MacGuffin?

DEATH SCENE Out Now!

My second novel DEATH SCENE was released on Monday, and so for today's post I am giving it a shameless plug.

DEATH SCENE is the first of a series of novels featuring my amateur sleuth, Canadian actress Shara Summers. Summoned back to England to be with her family during a time of crisis, Shara discovers doctors are at a loss as to what is causing her sister Astrid’s debilitating sickness. After her aunt is found dead at the bottom of the stairs the death is deemed an accident. Shara suspects otherwise. Her investigation unearths shocking family secrets and a chilling realization that could have far-reaching and tragic consequences that affect not only her own future, but Astrid’s as well.

Here is a taster from DEATH SCENE:

The smell of decay hit me right away, and I knew something was wrong. “Hello?” I called again. I stepped forward, down the dingy corridor, assuming Ruth was, as always, in her backroom. My foot brushed against something on the floor. I looked down. Ruth lay crumpled at the foot of the stairs.

For a moment, I just stared at her, unable to move. Ruth was on her side, her body bent almost in half, her glasses askew, her mouth hanging open. One arm was thrown out from underneath her body, the other curled up by her abdomen. Her hands were like claws, the knuckles enlarged and misshapen.

“Auntie Ruth!” I bent down and touched her face, and recoiled quickly. Her skin was cold. Her eyes were open, staring sightless, and there was no movement in her chest. Her body looked twisted and distorted. It was quite clear she was dead.

DEATH SCENE is now available from Lyrical Press, Inc. If you've got a Kindle and would prefer the one-click option for purchase, you can buy direct from Amazon (this link if you're in the US, and this link if you're in the UK).

Don't Forget to Turn Out the Lights and Lock the Door Behind You

The Bookstore officially closed its doors this past weekend, ending a nearly four-decade existence. While one could blame the plethora of e-readers and the economy, apparently another contributing factor was the transition of the Armor Library from Fort Knox to Fort Benning.

Those who know me will tell you I'm not a sentimental person (cats excluded). But as I walked those aisles for the last time, perusing the shelves and noting titles for future reference, a pall hung over the store. I had to smile when I saw a display of Yasmine Galenorn's books which were gone a few minutes later. "Happy reading," Only two days earlier my husband had bought me Teeth (ed. Ellen Datlow), Camera Obscura (Lavie Tidhar), A Madness of Angels and the Midnight Mayor (Kate Griffin), and an angel statue. Now I had returned to pick up a copy of one of Julie Kagawa's Iron Fey series. I'd hoped to buy The Iron King but Jerry told me that was sold out, so I bought The Iron Daughter. (On a side note, I will kick myself for missing Julie's signing there back in April.) Along with Julie's YA fantasy, I bought Where Angels Fear to Tread by (Thomas Sniegoski) and Demons are a Girl's Best Friend (Linda Wisdom).

Do I wish I could have afforded more books? Hell, yeah. Although I'm pretty sure my husband would have something to say about all the books piled against the walls. He claims I have too many books and I rejoin that I'm a writer and one can never have too many books. (Disclaimer: The DH isn't a bibliophobe. He likes to read non-fiction. And no, I don't know if "bibliophobe" is a word or not, but if it isn't, it is now.) :-)

But there it is. Farewell, Jerry, and thanks for all those years of supporting local writers. I don't know whether or not Jerry will open a used bookstore, but my fingers are crossed. While I regret I only knew about The Bookstore a year or so, I'm glad I got the chance to not only buy books from an independent bookseller but to attend two signings by JR Ward.

I'm taking some great memories with me.

The Bradbury Institute

I have a project that I work on for fun, usually on weekends and sometimes when the main work in progress isn't, um, working. It's something I have no intention of submitting anywhere so I've decided to post it as a free weekly serial.

A bit of background from the Stories page:


The Bradbury Institute is a small private organization dedicated to the study of magic and the occult. Its members are scholars, magicians, psychics, plus a few individuals of … unique origin. In addition to academic research members are often involved in the search for rare magical artifacts, as well as a larger secret mission.

Stories will include dangerous grimoires, fantastical creatures, heroes and villains, and whatever else the author can come up with. Also adult language, occasional violence, and quite probably sex - so consider yourself warned.


And here's a brief blurb about the first story, The Key of Darkness:

The Key of Darkness is an ancient grimoire designed for summoning and subjugating a powerful entity from deep within the lowest levels of Hell. The sorcerer who utilizes the Key will have unimaginable evil at their fingertips, to do with as their darkest desires dictate.

The Key was meant to be entrusted for safe-keeping at the Bradbury Institute but it has been stolen by an impulsive young thief. Now the race is on to retrieve the grimoire before he sells it to the highest bidder.



A new chapter will be posted every Wednesday. The Key of Darkness began this week so go on over to The Bradbury Institute and check it out. I'm having a lot of fun writing this and I hope readers enjoy it too!