Author Appleton

Writing. Fantasy. Sci-fi. Mystery

AuthorAppleton

Death in life: a writer’s perspective

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This year I have seen three elderly family members pass on. Two of my great aunts and also my grandfather on my mother’s side. Last year it was my grandmother . . . I realize that in the midst of life, there is a constant flow of death, but I think the focus is typically on life in death. As in, life after death. Stopping to consider the value of death itself puts an interesting perspective on life.

When someone we know and love dies, the world around them is either greatly impacted through their absence, or not. Personally, I find this to be the primary concern where death is considered.

When we die, what sort of hole will we leave behind? Will it be a poisonous well, or a spring of blessings to our families and our society?

I suppose you can add a third alternative, which of course is to leave behind nothing. To not be missed. To have made no lasting impact. To be really and utterly forgotten. A sad condition. Not only for the departed soul but for those who are left behind.

Legacy is everything. Our children will die. Their children will die. Unless you are an Alexander the Great, a Leonardo DaVinci, a Joan of Arc, or a master of Psalms like David, or a renowned man of wisdom like Solomon, the following generations will not remember you.

While it is true that legacy is also passed through our children (I consider my children to be such) it is also less about me and more about my values. The values pass generation to generation with proper teaching and strong love.

But, profoundly, we cannot speak with our loved ones when we have died. Death is the impenetrable barrier. It is only after one is dead that we miss being able to converse with them. Fascinating isn’t it?

There is one blessed group of people for whom this is not true. While the rest of the world dies and is heard from no more, the artists continue to speak. Their paintings stir up conversations and their writings speak for them long after they are dead.

This is what writing is for me. My words to the generations that will follow. My perceptions to make them consider, my convictions to challenge them, and my love to strengthen them. When I die I will have a legacy that I cannot put a price tag on.

This is the value of Death in Life. We live and we see death, and death reminds us to make a lasting impact on those who will follow us.

Q: What are your thoughts on death? Does it motivate you to leave a legacy?

I need your input for Swords of the Six special edition

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As the details come together for the special edition release of Swords of the Six I would highly value some feedback at some options I am looking over! I thought of doing this as a poll, but for some reason I can’t find that function at this time. Yep, my technical know-how just went brain dead. So instead you can just comment with your preferences on these options:

  1. Hardcover or Paperback?
  2. 6 x 9-inches, or 5.5 x 8.5-inches?
  3. Author introduction, or not?
  4. Should I include a glossary of names and places with a pronunciation guide?
  5. Chapter titles, or simple numbering?
  6. Should I incorporate my map drawings (same look and style as in Neverqueen)?
  7. Audiobook: dramatized reading, or read by the author?
  8. Any additional ideas? I’d love to hear them!

Promo materials for Special Editions!

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I am excited to share with you a glimpse at the promo materials being created for the release of the Special Editions of The Sword of the Dragon series! Easy handouts are invaluable, thus a new business card is in order. Simply a showcasing of what is to come… and “to come” is coming quickly.

Business card face:

new business card reverse

Card reverse:

new business card front

The “boring” verbs?

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I am writing this article from my iPhone. Isn’t technology amazing? Only a decade ago I never would’ve dreamed of using one of these devices to accomplish my writing needs. You might think that I am off topic, if I am talking about verbs, but give me a second and I will get back around to the point.

One of my favorite Star Wars novels is titled Traitor and it was written by Mathew Stover. It was a fantastic read and I remember going back to it again and again to study the writing technique. Both the story and the dialogue felt exceedingly natural. Smooth as butter to read. Something that every writer strives to achieve, but does not always succeed in doing, when creating a novel.

I have seen interviews with some authors who no longer type out their stories, rather they will take a walk or a hike and dictate their books. Personally I find this fascinating. We can talk so much faster than we can type, but my fear is that going back and editing all of those pages of dictation will require too much work. But sitting here now, dictating to my iPhone for this article I am honestly astounded at where technology has come.

There is a learning curve to everything and I wonder where the next phase of writing will take us.

Most recently I have been finishing the rework of my first novel. It is turning out so well, and it is very satisfying to feel this way about it. But an odd thing has happened in the editing process. Odd to me anyway!

Over a decade ago when I first entered the book publishing world, I was instructed by several editors and a couple of respected writers to eliminate a lot of simple verbs in my stories. Verbs such as was, were, did, had, etc. The result was that I chose many substitutes for the simple verbs, opting for active verbs instead. Looking back now I am not so sure that was the right choice.

In the past few months I have read novels like Ender’s Game by Orson Scott card, and Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton. Their use of verbs is far more similar to my first instincts on writing. I find this fascinating! And so in the reworking of Swords of the Six I have rewritten large portions, bringing it back to the more literary style that I have enjoyed in books I’ve read.

The truest form of storytelling is verbal narrative, And I feel that the best written stories read as if someone is telling you the story. Perhaps we have reached a point where the rules of writing are destroying the art of writing. And perhaps the technology that we now possess is capable of liberating us from the tyranny of what is acceptable to the gatekeepers. In part, at least, this is true.

 

An ultra portable writing device

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Having the right tools makes any job a lot easier and more enjoyable. I was reminded of this over the past couple of weeks because I got a new writing machine. It is the ultraportable Microsoft Surface Go and it goes (pun intended) everywhere with me.

Up until now I have lugged my gaming laptop, a Toshiba Qosmio, whenever I want to write away from home. Although it is a fantastic machine, being so heavy and large I cannot easily pull it out and put it away again for short writing sessions. It has suffered more than a few drops as a result of getting left on my bed or being carted around.

Two years’ worth of researching various devices narrowed my choices to the iPad with keyboard, a cheap 11-inch laptop, or the Surface Go with typepad. I settled on the Surface Go because of its premium build and full Windows capability. Full Windows capability is essential because I already own MS Word and I don’t want to pay subscription for Office 365. Also, I prefer working offline.

I’m a bit of a minimalist. I don’t like a complicated setup for writing. The fewer distractions on the device the better.

The impact on my writing of having this portability has been greater than I’d anticipated. In every spare moment that inspiration strikes I am able to set the device up and type immediately. It adjusts easily on my lap, a table, or even in bed. Fantastic! Also, the battery is sufficiently efficient allowing a full day’s use (for my limited purposes) without worrying about looking for a power outlet.

I have been stuck in my writing for a couple of years. Time, I thought, was my great enemy. Truth is, distractions were my greatest obstacle. Legitimate and good distractions. I have never mastered maximizing small bits of time to accomplish large projects, but with this device I have.

Swords of the Six is taking new shape, expanding and becoming a much better novel than I first wrote a decade ago. We learn a lot when we study our craft for years, and I am loving the process of improving the original.

If you are stuck in your creative process, consider what tools you need. I wish I had acquired a Surface Go a couple of years ago.

Wishing all of you a merry Christmas season!

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A happy Christmas, everyone! These past couple of months have been a whirlwind of many hours at my day job, family commitments, a couple of short family trips, and of course writing work. At this time my writing efforts are narrowed to a very specific project: editing, revising, and expanding Swords of the Six in preparation for publishing the special edition.

I apologize for not posting here more frequently but it is more important that I use the time I have to hammer out the books. I cannot tell you how many times fans have asked when they will be able to read the next book In Search of Dragons. But I cannot finish that book until I re-publish the original three books that AMG Publishers handed back to me this year.

This time of year is a looking forward to the New Year ahead. A time to reflect on what was accomplished and what we are determined to accomplish next year. For my writing I have quite a list, including producing the first audiobook in 2019. For now, here is a list of all of my books currently available:

Swords of the Six
Offspring
Key of Living Fire
The Phantom’s Blade
Neverqueen
Neverqueen 2: The Suffering Chalice
By Sword By Right

Coming next are:

In Search of Dragons
Neverqueen 3: The Queens Two

Announcement: The Sword of the Dragon series rebrand!

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For over a decade now I have been writing and publishing fantasy novels and what a rewarding thing it is! My first novel was originally self-published, then sold to a traditional publishing company. This change carried with it some positives and some unforeseen negatives. By releasing my rights to AMG Publishers I lost marketing control and, starting a few years ago, that company suffered some setbacks and my first three novels have hung in limbo ever since. The result? My writing career took a big stumble that was beyond my power to fix. But the good news is: all of that turned around this week!

I have often said that I think the biggest mistake I made in my writer career was to sell my first novel to a big publisher. But I was young and flattered by the recognition, and eager to let others shoulder some of the burden of marketing and selling my work. At the time of the sale to AMG my first novel, Swords of the Six, was rocketing to success. My wife and I were full-time on the road and I was selling to bookstores and schools in several states. The momentum was building just as I’d hoped it would. But when I signed the contract I had to stop production on my first novel (until the publisher could re-release it). I had to get off of the road and settle into a regular job while waiting for the book to be published again.

This week I have acquired the rights to my first three novels from AMG and I am so excited for what this means! Total creative control is now back in my hands and I can market and sell the books wherever the opportunity presents itself.

Swords of the Six, Offspring, and Key of Living Fire will be published with new designs and the stories themselves will receive fresh edits! Each sequential book in the series will be published with the new design as well.

Swords of the Six (special edition)

The e-book editions were overpriced through the other publisher. With Flaming Pen Press we will grow the digital reader audience and drop the price to a competitive level. This is a market that I feel my books have largely ignored and in which I see a lot of opportunity.

Print editions will now include both a paperback and a hardcover option. I love a nice hardcover edition! Which I know many of you collectors out there will appreciate.

Audiobooks will come last. I know I have been promising audiobooks for a couple of years now, and tying the new design to e-book, paperback, hardcover, and audiobook will make everything easier to find in search engines and sites.

When AMG published my second novel their buyers objected to the cover art that I had commissioned for it. It was absolutely stunning. A depiction of Oganna kneeling in the cave when she lifts her sword Avenger and her blade boomerang out of the stone floor. Now, at last, I can release the Offspring cover as I wanted you to see it with that artwork! Offspring will also be retitled Dragon Offspring. A subtle but important title change.

Over the next couple of months I will start releasing these new editions, beginning with Swords of the Six. For you, my readers, this means my novels will become unavailable for a little while. During this transition the new editions of The Sword of the Dragon novels will be designed and prepped for publication. Big things are in store! Let’s bring this epic fantasy journey into fresh territory.

Q: Which part of this change interests you the most? 

Words beyond the grave

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We all feel lonely at times, even when surrounded by people.

Writing is lonely always, or so it often seems. The horror and the beauty of this is that it makes that time more precious, it feels like being pulled out of reality into a spiritual realm. Suddenly the world of possibility seems not so hard to reach and the hope that burned as a mere ember is a blaze of starlight.

If you feel creative with words or art, then you know of what I speak.

Doesn’t the world seem a limiting place? We hear of limitations. We see restrictions on imagination. But in our imagination the brick walls crumble, giving place to a utopia. Life is all we could ever wish it to be. Every beautiful possibility is ours for the taking . . . because the fear of following those possibilities is in a distant, alien place. A place called the “real world.”

If you feel creative with words or art, then you know of what I speak.

So crumble those walls between your fists. After all, your fists are as powerful as your mind wants them to become. That hero or heroine that you wish to be? You can be them. Limits? Limits are for the undecided, the ever-wary, those whose names will be forgotten in a hundred years.

If you feel creative with words or art, your name can live beyond your life. Your words can be carried from one generation to the next with life-changing, spiritual power.

Q: How do you want your creativity to spread your messages beyond the grave?