Category: Occult thriller

Competition – Solve Codes to Win £15!

I hope you like the new look of the blog. I have also added a permanent link to the Lazlo Ferran Merchandise on the right in the Lazlo on the Web section of links, so you will always be able to find it. The Merchandise is part of the prize in the competition.

Competition
In line with the release of my WWII thriller Attack Hitler’s Bunker! – at the end of June, I am having a competition. Ordo Lupus and the Temple Gate: Second Edition had secret codes at the beginning of each chapter, which I hoped, added some depth to the book, once they were solved. Attack Hitler’s Bunker! will also have codes – to be broken, at the beginning of each chapter. So it seemed appopriate to base the competition on breaking one of the codes in Ordo Lupus and the Temple Gate: Second Edition.

The coded cryptic puzzle in question is at the beginning of the Epilogue. These codes are used by the Ordo Lupus to conceal their secret teachings. If you feel you have what it takes to join the Illuminati, Knights Templar (if they still existed), or the legendary Priory of Sion you will have no trouble solving this coded message. Please email me with your answer at the email address at the top of this blog. Continue reading “Competition – Solve Codes to Win £15!” →

Changes to my blog – Editor for Hire

You will see a new link to the right – Writer for hire. With the decision to write full-time for this year at least, if possible, comes the challenge of making enough money to live on. I estimate I need to sell about 12000 titles per month or 450 per day. This translates to a need to increase sales by 45/day per month until the end of the year. I don’t want to compromise too much what I am actually doing in the writing sphere so I am going to suppliment my income by hiring out my writing skills. You will find details and rates on the Writer for hire page if you click the link to the right.

Iron II: Unknown Place, Unknown Universe

I am hoping to publish Iron II: Unknown Place, Unknown Universe in March/April after an extensive rewrite. I have taken out a Chapter’s equivalent in the middle of the book, added something new to the final battle (which will tie in with Book III) and generally tidied up the dialogue, adding idioms for the three youngsters to make their individual speech-patterns more distinct. It’s the first time I have written a story with three lead characters and it’s quite a challenge making speech clear without writing ‘he said’ and ‘she said’ all over the place.

I am also thinking about the plot for Iron III – which I think will take place predominantly in space, and several other stories which I have in mind.
My review in the Science Fiction and Fantasy South Africa group didn’t materialise (yet?) but I am hoping one will appear For Ordo Lupus and the Temple Gate soon on Big Al’s Blog.
Ordo Lupus and the Temple Gate Paperback is now out as a Second Edition with the same cover as the e-book.

Making Savage Cuts as an Editor

Well, I have had to savage my own book – not by reviews but by cutting. The other night I had had enough of the younger readers complaining that the first 2 chapters were a bit slow so I took an axe to it and cut from 40,000 words down to just 25,000. Gone are some of my beloved sections on Bulgaria and the second world war and the childhood and wartime romances are reduced to just one line. Now the story starts with the murder of the main protagonist’s daughter. It seems a bit weird reading it back, stripped-down as it is but I think once I get used to it, it will probably be better. It certainly has producing some interesting effects. A reverie now lasts more than one chapter – unusual, but I am sure there are precedents.

Ah well, the main problem is the people who have already bought it. I have offered to send manuscripts of the new, shorter chapters to them. I also pointed out that they have read the Extended Version of the first Edition. I am also considering doing a different cover for the Kindle version.

New Short Story opener

For those who haven’t noticed the twitter entry, Ordo Lupus has been accepted for publication by Createspace.

How is this for a short story opener. Is it worth pursuing?

“God’s body man, giveth me the 4th gear! Now!”
“Fucking press the damned clutch you madman!” I shouted back over the reverberating din of the V8 Chevy block, attempting some humility and knowing ‘damned’ was the only swear-word King Henry VIII would actually acknowledge.
The large pallid face broke into a toothy grin. “Raymond. You are an impertinent – what is the modern phrase – jackass, but I like you!” His big foot, somewhat incongruously contained in a size 14 Nike trainer, pressed clumsily down on the accelerator and I slammed the gearstick into 4th. A moment later the King, hunched over the royal Sparco steering wheel, turned the car to the left, and as, dirt spurting from the drifting rear wheels, we emerged from the turn, I realised we were actually going to finish in third place. Not yet a win, but for a man new, not only to the sport, but to the century, it was not a bad effort. Henry roared his approval as we crossed the line.

I Finished a New Short Story

I just finished a new story Eighteen, Blue. I am going to publish it on Kindle quickly along with the free first chapter of The Ice Boat Volume II am going to take my time to respond to Gary’s recent comment comment that the serpent in the Garden of Eden is depicted with wings in some cases. and either another short story Another One for No 19 or the free first chapter of Ordo Lupus and The Temple Gate – haven’t quite decided yet. It’s a formula that seems to work.

How About Winged Serpents?

I am going to take my time to respond to Gary’s recent comment that the serpent in the Garden of Eden is depicted with wings in some cases.

Although I have never seen images like this (to my knowledge) of a serpent with wings in the Garden of Eden, it does not suprise me to see one now. We have often had little tussles Gary over the way I see themes at the core of Ordo Lupus and the Temple Gate, and the way you see them. I have referred sometimes to werewolves and warg.

The reason I can do this (and still think myself sane) is because, for me the modern concept of werewolves and vampires etc, is probably a romanticised and glamorized version of what was once, by some, seen as more real than mere myth. I see the roots of these myths and legends being far more interesting, buried as they are deep within esoteric knowledge that is hidden from most of the world. That is why the wolves in my book are not just wolves but communicate on some level with people. The main character in the book is a wolf-being in a human body (ie with the Earthly clothes of a human).
Similarly the Serpent was once a human. Continue reading “How About Winged Serpents?” →

Writing Style : to be Short and Brief

Been thinking a bit about writing style – the fact that sometimes I am torn between short, really punchy writing like Warren Ellis and more discursive writing like Tolkien.

The thing is that I think very tight dialogue is great if the world is very familiar and so you don’t have to worry too much about the reader knowing his/her way round. It’s especially good too if the main character follows some kind of template – stereotype is too strong a word.
But since my writing is really mainly about people, my characters don’t comfortably fit into patterns so there really seems to be a limit to how often I can do that kind of brief writing.

Any thoughts anyone?

I find it quite nice to post brief thoughts to twitter but 140 characters is a bit short to really get anything down other than soundbites on philosophical matters.

I Think I Have Got Myself Stuck

Oh dear. I have got myself into a bit of a tight spot with the plot. My heroes are stuck at the final battle scene, and have discovered a plant that can be grown to make the matrix for storing huge amounts of charge for lasers. I know sum1, Rebekah who is nanotech expert, and she tells me that nanotech takes huge energy cos the nanobots are grown in vacuums. So I thought cool – that means growing plants could be cheaper and faster. Problem is that on Io (moon of Jupiter) there is a thin atmosphere anyway and plants need Oxygen and light and water, so actually my plot falls apart. I need some kind of reason for the plants. It’s not really crucial to the plot in a logical sense but it just feels right.

I am stalled on this right now: because it is the final scene, I can’t really continue until I have fixed this.

If anybody comes up with a reason, let me know. Solutions on a postcard please.

Finding Titles for your Books

I have changed my mind on the title of the novel which is now almost ready for publication. I finally settled on:

Ordo Lupus and the Temple Gate.

I really like this title – not too much like a Harry Potter title but still has that ring to it. I like the rhythm of it actually. Also like the fact that I managed to get two descriptive words – gate and temple in there. The temple bit will be fairly obvious to most readers but the gate bit is only alluded to in the text.

The manuscript is now uploaded to lulu.com.

I have started work on building the cover for the book. I am having some problems getting permission for some of the images. One of the owners of an image seems to be uncontactable.

As far as the new sci-fi story is going, I have been making good progress and the plot is developing. What is suprizing though is that an element of plot has crept in which I never planned and I have no idea where it will go. Where do these things come from?