Earth or non-earth, that is the question!

A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away, I gave an online, one-time workshop about the settings for fantasy worlds.

It seems almost like a different lifetime. It practically was.

As I was preparing for the workshop, I learned one little piece of information that I've found utterly valuable in creating and discussing other fantasy worlds. What was this little revelation? Well, it's all based on this little planet we live on called, "Earth."

I realized that all fantasy and science fiction universes had to answer this one question either consciously or unconsciously: Is the setting in an earth-based universe or a non-earth based universe?

It's best if you can answer this question consciously because if you're aware of the issue then when situations arise in the writing, you can reflect on your answer to this question to best learn how to deal with it.

How do you know what's earth based or not? Well, is earth mentioned? Take a look at the lead in to this blog. Chances are you realize that it was a knock-off from Star Wars. So, is Star Wars earth based or not? Hopefully you're answering, "Earth based!" A galaxy far, far away automatically implies that it's in a galaxy several light-years from earth. Star Trek is easy because earth is referenced many times and they even brought whales back to San Francisco. Now, the new Star Trek movie allows for alternate timelines or realities (which I think they did an excellent job of spoon-feeding the audience a "newer" crew), but that's still an earth based universe. In a non-earth based universe, there is no reference to earth in any way, shape, or form. In these, earth seems not to exist.

So, how does this help you with writing your universe? This means that earth based universes have to follow the rules of earth as we know them. Planets have gravity. Not all planets in a solar system have life. Life is carbon based. Water boils at a certain temperature. In a non-earth based universe, you can break all these rules and create your own. It doesn't have to the same as here on earth as long as you can make it make sense to the reader. So let's say you have an issue with the trees on your planet. Let's say you want them to sing, really make music. We've all heard leaves blowing in the wind. Think about what that sounds like, especially quaking aspens. Close, but not really singing. In a non-earth based universe, you could easily say it's the wood or that the leaves are folded in such a way that makes them whistle. Great, make it plausible and use it. In an earth based universe though, we need to work harder because leaves have a specific purpose and a bend in them would defeat that purpose. What if there were spiders that made their homes in these trees? Now, we all know what happens when a string is plucked on a guitar -- it makes a noise. Well, the wind blowing through the spiders' strong webs act like fingers strumming a guitar. Ah, can you hear the music now?

What about magic? We don't have magic here on earth, so how can worlds with magic still be earth based? How can the Force exist when we can't physically draw objects to us by thinking about them now? Do we know everything? Are there not experiences that people report having every day that defy the logic that our world currently gives us? Miracles have been recorded. When you sit at the base of a tree and close your eyes, can you not feel the hum of nature around you? I think if you're reading this and/or you write fantasy, it is because you already believe there is more in this world than can be seen or proven.

Sacred Knight is based in an earth based universe. Yes, there's magic (or I should say magic is returning in the first book). Though I really don't get into the heart of magic until the second book, I know that on Steigan's world it is something that surrounds everyone. It comes from the life force of the whole planet. If we had magic here on earth, that's exactly where I'd expect it to come from.

So, go pay attention to your favorite sci-fi/fantasy worlds and see if they are earth or non-earth based. Then go back to your manuscript and see which you have.

Fear Settling In

Now that The Three Books is out to the world, there's fear now settling in.

For years it's been, "What if this happened to Steigan?" or "What if Steigan did that?" or "What would Steigan do?"

Now it's, "What if no one likes the story?" and "What if it's not nearly as good as I think it is?" and "What if it really wasn't ready?"

Should I have read through it a couple more times? Should I have made sure I that I had pushed the story as hard as I could?

I presume having this kind of fear is normal, right? A parent always worries about their child, right? Releasing a book is a monumental undertaking and when you've been working on it, thinking, and planning for so long, it's only natural to feel a certain amount of let down once it's done, right?

I can either wait for feedback or I can keep working on the next one. Hmmm. Marketing seems so hard when questions keep the fear inside. Steigan would hate for me to make statements that weren't true or fell short of the claims.

So I turn now and work on the next book. Soon, very soon, the fear will disappear and I'll be feeling back on top. I know this because this always happens. I must work through the uncertainty and feedback will come. I'll do shows and signings and get the marketing done. One piece of the puzzle at a time. Fear of failure isn't fatal, just a lesson in patience, don't you think?

Already I can hear Steigan telling me that one never knows what one is capable of until one tries. He'd tell me to keep moving, one foot in front of the other.

What do you do when fear stops you silly?

Writing in Layers

I was asked recently how far into book 2 I was, if I'd even started writing it yet. While I admit that I've spent a lot of time formatting the first book, yes, I'm currently on writing the second book and am in chapter 12. So does that mean I'm almost halfway done? No!

Part of the time I spent writing this whole story has been just writing draft after draft. If anyone thinks that writing a fantasy novel is easy, well, it's not. If you're creating your own world like I did, you've got to think about culture, politics, religion, clothes, language, food, interactions with friends and family, planetary orbits -- in other words, everything! Sometime I'll talk about the different kinds of universes a world can be set in -- it's actually an online seminar I gave a long time ago. I spent a lot of time just getting to know my world and test things.

But once I knew the story, the actual writing came down to writing this story in layers. It's too hard to remember all the rules of writing at once. That's why manuscripts are created in drafts.

I admit. I was once a 15 year old author who thought every word I wrote was golden. I'm so glad now that I didn't actually get published then. I wasn't ready. I didn't have the life experiences I needed, nor did I really understand the craft of writing. Oh, I wrote drafts, but I didn't understand their purpose. I thought I did. I was so wrong.

It wasn't until I really experimented with writing different types of manuscripts (romance, children's, screenplays, short stories, etc.) that I realized that I was decent at writing dialog and immediate actions. Descriptions and pacing were other issues.

When I decided to change this to a graphic novel so I'd only have to write quick descriptions and dialog, all of a sudden my job felt easier (okay, drawing the dang thing is another issue!). I flew through writing the story this way. Talking heads, okay, I can do that.

Then, while I was drawing the story, I got an itching to write the novelization. Fine. A novelization. Writing a book was a hard project, but writing a novelization of the graphic novel much simpler.

Using what I had, I came back to the story. Now, all I had to do was add a little bit of setting and some more actions to the basics that I already had. After that, another draft to add a bit more. A few tweaks to the story in the next couple drafts. Soon, I'd been through it several times and added a little more each time.

As I built the layers, I would go through and try to apply "rules of writing" as I went. I'd try to note places where I was telling the story instead of showing it. I'd mix setting in with the dialog to break up the talking heads, but I'd also try to mix the setting into the action as to not stop the story.


Now, sitting on the other side of editing and having my proof copy in hand, I can tell you that there is something else I wish I'd done -- one more layer I'd gone through. I wish I'd actually printed out my story and run an editing draft on paper. I tried to do it all on my computer to be green and save the environment, but now I see that the paper draft would've helped me see a few things I missed. I'm not going to hold up the release of the book though I keep wondering if I should. I do see things that are wrong (and at this point I've only managed to read through chapter three). Of course, they may only bug me because I know better. After all, I've seen what passes as a published book these days -- books where the word "was" is a special candy to be used as many times in a sentence as possible like it was some fancy drug. But this is a lesson learned and I'm sure I'll have more to impart later. I plan on putting out a free PDF about the lessons I learned in writing The Three Books which will have these handy tips and more. I figure that'll be released in a few weeks.

In the meanwhile, if you have any questions about writing in layers (or any writing questions at all) let me know. I'd love to know what writing issues you're facing and maybe (because I have 35 years of writing experience) I can help point you in the right direction. But you can't get help if you don't ask.

Creator's Journal (or how I can best make fun of myself!)

I had this wonderful idea when I started this blog to post videos talking about my journey with Sacred Knight. I thought I'd be able to share my experiences with writing, especially writing the epic saga (I have mentioned that I've been working on this story for 17 years, right? That's a huge chunk of my life.).

With the weather being so cold and usually starting to snow or rain when I had a moment to record, not to mention my own failures at being on camera, it wasn't coming together. I knew I had to loosen up and do what was authentically me. Of course, that's going to end up weird! But once I got going and started laughing at myself, well, the ball began to roll.

Welcome to the Creator's Journal. Please, go check out the video. Let me know if you love it or hate it.



 I do really want to do more vlogs, but I'm such a writer not a performer that it terrifies me to look at the camera. I'm use to being on the other end. However, I do enjoy the process of putting the video's together -- must be the storyteller in me. I've found another mode -- a more visual, intimate, and immediate mode of storytelling.

After the first book gets released, I hope to release more videos talking about the writing and editing of the second book. It'll be more of a progression with the story. I really hope it helps other writers out there, let's them know that they aren't alone in plugging away endlessly at their manuscript with stars in their eyes. It's this mission that made me really want to do the Creator's Journal no matter what. Even if I ended up with stupid videos where I just laugh at myself.

"Imperfect action is better than perfect inaction." ~ Harry Truman