Continuing my resolution for 2026, I plunged into March with as much vigor as I could muster. I needed a project to come to life. I needed to finish several installments in a series to kick off my “rapid release” plan.
Did it work?
Well…
Not quiet.
The Drawbridge Problem
I decided to commit to my paranormal thriller idea, Codename Drawbridge. I planned the first three books, developed the characters, and filled a notebook (planning only works if I write it by hand). Thereafter, I plunged into churning out the draft (some of which is mentioned here).
My final word count was 61,459 out of a target of 80k. That’s not counting the many cuts, deletions, and alterations.
This seems like good news, right?
Almost done, right?
Again, not quiet.
No matter what I tried, the story kept dying on the operating table. I could not troubleshoot the problem either. Something just wasn’t clicking. The character motivations were there. The plot had a sound structure. There were ups and downs, twists and turns, but still there was an emptiness.
I tried redesigning the characters by making them “more broken”. Made them disagree and undermine each other. Things that excite me about stories and writing, yet it has never before felt like such a slog.
I think the real issue was external to the story. There wasn’t something wrong with it, but something wrong with me. I needed it to work. Too much pressure and the story died.
Plan B
This did not, however, deter me from writing like hell.
After much consternation and hairpulling, I decided to shelf Drawbridge for the time being. There is more than half a book there, so I won’t throw it away.
I decided that I needed something else. A story I could get lost in.
Fantasy has always been a love of mine. More so than Horror and Sci-Fi. Yet, I’ve always been intimidated by the genre. Something big and lofty that only someone with supreme skill can tackle.
I usually think that someone isn’t me.
But now I have taken the plunge. I am working on a Fantasy Trilogy.
The Fantastic
I’ve had this idea scribbled in my notebook for some time. Well, you see, the thing about a novel is that it needs more than one idea to come to life. So, let me amend that and say that I had several ideas scribbled in one of my many notebooks. Only now have I decided to smash them together.
Guess what happened.
A spark!
A spark that became a lightning bolt that started the monster’s heart.
My current project: The Court of the Wild Rose Trilogy.
The “trick” of this story requires me to plan them in reverse (this will be clear one day). The planning has been far more taxing than with the Drawbridge story, yet it does not entirely feel like a slog. This one has life.
The ideas I squished together are: (1) What is Kvothe from The King Killer Chronicles was lying (honestly, I still hope he is); and (2) what if someone else pulled the sword from the stone? Then, the logical next step would be: What if this is what the retired hero is lying about?
The Court of the Wild Rose
Something Arthurian. Something filled with magic and monsters. It is my own setting and my own characters and I am excited to share it with you!
While there are elements of darkness (which every story needs), this is something far brighter than my Balar books, for example. Maybe I need some lightness in my life for a bit.
On that note, I plan to sprinkle in as much magic as I can (we will see what survives the drafting process). There are plenty of gritty, realistic fantasies out there (most of them feel rather samey, anyway). I want to go back to the wonder I felt in my childhood. Also, something that’s not Romantasy. Yeah, I know it sells or whatever, but I need to be able to live with myself once I publish it.
Anyway, tell me what you think in the comments below.
Until next time…
Keep writing!