Tag: Werewolf

Ordo Lupus 2 update-Engrossed in Writing

It’s been a long time, I know, since the last update. To be honest, I have been heavily engrossed in writing the above manuscript. It’s taken up just about every minute of my spare time. It’s going to be worth it though. I think it’s much more taught than Ordo Lupus I and has a really meaty climax. It still has The Serpent in it but explores the werewolf thing a lot further. The title is a secret: it’s one of those titles that you think, ‘Hey, somebody must have used that before’, and then you realise that they haven’t. So I am not going to tell you in case somebody nicks it.

I also went to the Tower of London last weekend. If you haven’t ever been or haven’t been for a long time (like me) then I thoroughly recommend it. Of course I am fascinated by the 11th, 12th and 13th century anyway but it has a tremendous atmosphere. The White Tower is especially good – with rows of lovely Norman oak beams and huge fireplaces – all original. Big windows too for the day. It’s also surprisingly snug. I think William must have had a great time living there.

They have a few actors dotted about doing their stuff in period costume and I chatted to a lady doing her crocheting. I haven’t a clue what she was talking about! She said something about her husband having been murdered (well, this is the Tower of London!) but the more I tried to talk, the more convoluted her story became. Anyway it was a laugh and the tourists around me seemed quite intrigued.

Contrary to rumour, it’s not to difficult to get in: I went at about 2pm on a Saturday and I queued for about 10 mins for ticket. I didn’t queue at all to get into the Tower. I took hundreds of photos too.

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.

These are my Latest Updates

I haven’t had much time to post recently. Yesterday most people I sent freebies of Ordo Lupus and the Temple Gate received them in the post (I sent out 10 copies) including my parents. Most seem to like the look of it. Still not sure about the cover. There is some dissension so I may try changing it slightly on the kindle version to see if it has any effect.

In the mean time work continues on Iron/Too Bright the Sun. I am thinking now that it does lend itself to being a trilogy and perhaps that’s why I cannot decide on the title. Perhaps the series should be called the Iron Trilogy and the first book would be Too Bright the Sun. In any case I am getting ideas for the second volume. I need to spend some time working through them in my mind to see if they are viable.

I do really want to understand why Inchoate sells so well. I think it is a combination of the choppy, fast paced dialogue and narrative combined with the viewpoint of a delinquent adolescent, and perhaps the theme of sci-fi, religion and time travel.

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.

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?” →

Reaching Your Target Audience

Well, I have decided to call the book ‘Ordo Lupus and The Winged Serpent’. It’s not a name I thought up (thanks – you know who you are and there will definitely be acknowledgement), but it’s better than the titles I thought up and others like it.

Target Audience
I initially aimed this book at Baby Boomers – well actually I basically aimed it at fantasy/suspense thrillers and then pleased myself, but it has ended up more pure fantasy than I intended. I don’t really mind that. It’s often been said that there is an element of sci-fi in all my stories and I suppose fantasy is pretty close to that, so maybe I am homing in on what I really like writing (and perhaps I am getting better at it). I now just need to actually make contact with my audience! I had a lot of friends into this kind of writing many years ago at college, but I seem to have lost contact with them. I do not have a single close friend who is into the genre now, so I am contacting interest groups on lulu.com (where my work is published). I will see if they are interested in reviewing my work, and I will review some of theirs in return. Continue reading “Reaching Your Target Audience” →

Blog: The Taste of First Blood-updated

This week: Werewolves in Mauritius, Rewards for Reviews, Short Stirling aircraft recovery, Video Blog Tour. See end note.

Werewolves in Mauritius
I often feel like a rabbit in the headlights when it comes to blog time. I simply haven’t prepared anything much and I am so busy, yet I want to give something to my readers and fans. This week it is a little easier because I came across this article on Werewolves in Mauritius (link no longer works). Actually it’s not the original recent article I was looking for – I heard of this phenomenon back in the summer – but the frequency of reports shows just how steeped in Werewolf culture Mauritius is. So I decided to make enquiries.Werewolves – or Loup Garou – the French equivalent word – inhabit the Mauritian subconscious like the sea and sun of this gorgeous island. They are said to prowl the streets and night, rape women and appear as naked men covered in oil. They are also said to be able to vanish at will but despite having such supernatural powers, they are not averse to a little high-tech gadgetry in their lives. The most recent spate of sighting this year included several eye-witness accounts of the Loup Garou carrying mobile phones and even talking on them!

Continue reading →