fantasy Archives - Page 8 of 12

Amarone Celebration

January 8, 2013 By JPMcLean 9 Comments

JP McLean finishes third book of trilogy!

Just before Christmas I made a trip to the liquor store to pick up a few special gifts. While I stood in the fine wines section contemplating the choices, my attention drifted down to a bottle of Amarone.

I quickly averted my gaze.

This was the season of giving, I reminded myself, and I was pretty sure that didn’t mean giving to myself. I made my selections then moved to the single malts. Again, my gaze wandered to fine wines. Not today, I reminded myself, and continued my gift shopping.

When I arrived at the check out, I joined a long line. The entire time I waited, that damn bottle of Amarone called my name.

“You’re going to need me,” it taunted. I ignored it.

“Soon. You’ll see,” it chanted. I looked away.

“You’ll regret not having me on hand,” it said, humming Adele’s, Don’t you Remember.

I responded in kind, singing P!nk’s, Sober.

The Hairy Eyeball

The gentleman in front of me gave me the hairy eyeball (I really shouldn’t sing in public). His order filled a shopping cart. No one had that many friends, I thought, uncharitably. His bulk order gave me plenty of time to re-think my virtuous nature. Who was I trying to fool, I rationalized? And while he yanked out his credit card, I skeedattled back to fine wines, grabbed that bottle of Amarone and dragged it back to my cart.

It’s now a month since that fateful trip to the liquor store. The days have been filled with bouts of guilt knowing I’d hidden the Amarone in a closet just around the corner from the kitchen. Late in the evening when I’m plucking away at my computer, it taunts me from its cradle. Every morning for a month I’ve said, “not yet, Il mio amore. I’m not done,” and then another night of passionate typing ensues. I persevere at the computer, day after day, night after night, moving inexorably forward. It’s become a pilgrimage. JP McLean finishes third book of trilogy

But tonight is different.

Tonight something monumental happened. The clock struck six p.m. (nine p.m. Eastern Central Time) and I finally fessed up to my better half about the Amarone. He didn’t blink (he knows my nefarious nature well). He lassoed that plucky bottle of Amarone and uncorked it. “What’s the occasion?” he sang out, pulling two glasses from the cupboard.

“Soon,” I said.

He went back to the news. An hour later he returned, peering over my shoulder. “Ready?” he asked patiently. (I added patiently because he’s listening).

Another long fifteen minutes passed before I gave him the go ahead. “Pour,” I said, and he did.

And now, here we sit, enjoying a very fine glass of Amarone; a glass fine enough for a celebration. One the Amarone itself foretold before Christmas. “Congratulations,” it said, and we raised a glass in toast. Congratulations, indeed, I agreed, savouring the rich, thick notes of a perfect bottle of wine.

And that’s what it tastes like to type “the end,” at the bottom of the last page of the third book of a trilogy. What a ride!

Update: The Gift Legacy is now complete at seven books. You can read about all the book here.

Photo by chuttersnap on Unsplash

Grinding to a Standstill

January 4, 2013 By JPMcLean Leave a Comment

Last week as I sat at my computer sipping yet another bladder-challenging-sized mug of tea, I puzzled over why my writing had ground to a standstill. I have an outline. I know how the story ends. I know the characters as well as my own family. So why the listlessness, the disconnect? Grinding to a standstill

Word Jam

Previously when I hit a writing snag, I’d write another scene or define a new character or setting. That almost always worked to loosen the writing log jam. But I’m near the end of the last book in the trilogy so there aren’t new characters or settings to dream up.

I took a break, and the drone of the vacuum helped me figure out what was going on. I didn’t have clear enough directions for getting from where I was in the telling of the story to the end I had in mind. My outline was too rough. It lacked the detail I needed.

(More experienced writers would likely have figured that out sooner.)

Back to the Outline

I went back to the outline, re-read and printed the last few pages. I flipped through the notepad I carry around with me like a security blanket and tumbled ideas around in my head for another day or two. It was the jump-start my imagination needed. As I began filling in the outline, ideas took shape and grew into even better scenes than I’d initially imagined. The outline is now bursting at the seams and I can hardly wait to dig in and write the rest of Emelynn’s story.

God I love writing – why’d it take me so long to discover that part of me?

Photo by Cassie Boca on Unsplash Grinding to a standstill

Home for Christmas

December 12, 2012 By JPMcLean Leave a Comment

Mundane chores are dumping all over my home-for-Christmas holiday spirit. Roaming dust bunnies, dead Halloween plants, overflowing compost bins, and so many more small jobs need attending to. But they’re in stiff competition for my time. I’ve also got to promote my first book, nudge the second book along to publication, and complete the third all-important final installment in the trilogy.

Yikes. I could use an elf or three.

I’m surrounded by far more meaningfully employed and less time-challenged friends. They’re chuffed with delight at the sight of their finely decorated trees and homes. These friends have already dispatched their Christmas gifts to faraway places. Their Christmas baking is neatly packed in pretty tins. Their turkeys are already on ice. Receiving their perky Christmas cards makes me want to throw up my hands in defeat.

I’m insanely envious.

This will be the third Christmas since I embarked on the project that has become the all-consuming Gift Trilogy. In 2010 it was still a fresh endeavour and I busted my butt to make the holidays happen without a glitch. 2011 saw the new, and decidedly not improved me, beg off of all but fireplace mantel decorations and a plug-in pre-decorated tree.

This year I’ll endeavour to find a better balance.

I’ve laid out the gifts that need to be mailed and found boxes that fit (I’ll post them this week). I’ll schedule a day late in the week to clean the house then decorate al la Martha. I’ll groom the dogs and write out the Christmas dinner shopping list. But Christmas cards won’t happen and neither will Christmas baking. Molly-maid will do a drive-by, not the usual dust the ceiling fan-type of job. Those compromises are the path to sanity for me this Christmas.

Eventually the dust bunnies will be corralled, the compost will give up its gold, and Christmas will happen with all the tinsel and turkey trimmings. But the new me includes writing, so somewhere along the way a twitter or blog post will roll out. The second book’s cover art or a catchy tag line will be born, and the third book will continue its journey to completion.

So, here’s to enjoying the holidays with friends and family, good food, some nog and a laugh or two while keeping the mundane to a dull roar. I’ll still write – it seems to be a part of me now – but I’ll also decorate and cook and wrap and drink to the good health and happiness of all my better-organized friends.

Cheers!

Photo by erin mckenna on Unsplash

On Your Mark

November 26, 2012 By JPMcLean 2 Comments

On your mark. Get set. Read . . . or Wait?

Someone told me the other day that they never read the first book in a trilogy until after the final book was published. When I asked why, she said she didn’t want to invest her time in a story that might leave her hanging. Would you read book one of an unfinished trilogy?

It wasn’t the first time I’d heard that sentiment. I’m often asked if my books are standalones or if they leave the reader on a cliff.

Cliff-hangers

I feel confident the answer is no. The first book contains a complete story arc. In fact, I finished the book before I entertained the idea that I could carry on with the characters.

There are unanswered questions at the end of the books, but the unanswered questions aren’t cliff-hangers.

My intention is to leave enough room for readers to draw some of their own conclusions. After all, it’s a fantasy: I want to leave the reader wondering, maybe hoping, that this parallel world exists all around them. It’s a more believable scenario if some questions remain unanswered, just like in our own lives.

Mark Your Calendar

Whether or not you’re one of those readers holding off until I finish writing the trilogy, I’m happy to tell you that the second book, Revelation is complete. The release date is late spring 2013. I’ve already outlined the third book, Redemption, and I’m more than halfway through writing it. I’m aiming for a fall 2013 release date.

So, hold off if you must, but mark it on your calendar—because unless I’m hit by the proverbial bus, (touch wood!) the trilogy will cross the finish line in less than a year.

Update: The trilogy is now complete at seven books. Read about it here. Purchase it here.