The Story Behind The Stories
Legacy - Hardest Part of Writing the Story
I have to say that the hardest part of writing this book was the risk and self-doubt that plagued me from beginning to end. I am a huge believer in the quote, “Write the story that needs to be written,” as well as the one, “There is no book so great that someone won’t hate it and no book so awful that someone won’t love it.”
Leopold - Deleted Scene
Leopold started out over 200k (!) and during my last edits/revision I finally managed to mercilessly slash and burn a decent chunk of it and it now hovers around 170k. Still too big for smaller ebook publishers to take a chance on, so I decided to go the self-publishing route.
Healing Lance - Writing the Story
The final version of this story was not an easy thing to achieve. The first draft was decent but minimal. It was short and straight to the point. Then I wrote the second book and realized what I needed to add to the first. So I went back and tweaked. Then I wrote the third book and realized I had even more to add to the first. So, really, “Healing Lance” wasn’t done until I’d finished “Avenging Lance.”
Healing Lance - Quick Facts
I wanted to write a story about forgiveness, redemption, and compassion. I wanted to create a story about finding oneself and understanding one’s purpose. Lance’s life sort of gets a “reset” after he breaks out of the numb funk he’d lived in for most of his life. Now he has to confront all he’s done and atone.
Red Sun - Religion in Story
Now, I’m not a religious person myself. I consider myself an agnostic (though, for a hot second in high school, I was a goth wiccan), and so I know little about the rituals and core believes of many of the Christian sects. I know the broad strokes but none of the finer details. That is why I made Raphael’s father a bit more of a progressive Catholic, which helped Raphael be more open with being gay when he reunites with his father.
Red Sun - Character Profile - Gregor
I think this book has the most time spent in his point of view as he chases Raphael and Ahmes, determined to collect Raphael’s blood for a spell that Arcas needs to cast. I took my time with his scenes, wanting to add more depth to him but also display the quiet madness of his devotion. He believes with all his heart that what he’s doing is right and that Arcas will be victorious in the end. I pity him, actually. His mind has been so warped by Arcas that pleasing him is Gregor’s only purpose in life.
Red Sun - Character Profile - Ahmes
When I set out to write this story, Ahmes took time to develop. I think I had a draft written that I ended up discarding and rewriting. I needed Ahmes to have opposite and complementary elements to Raphael. Opposite in his age, maturity, and peace with how and what he is, a cat shifter, and complementary in his gentle and protective nature, and easy-going attitude. He was supportive of Raphael from the very start and never wavered in his determination to set his friend on the right path.
Red Sun - Character Profile - Raphael
So… Raphael. Sweet, sweet Raphael. He’s gone through quite the transformation since I first envisioned the series and knew I wanted to write about an “unusual” wolf shifter. And the changes I made to him, in turn, changed the story. For the better. He started out as an older man haunted by the beast within him and became a young man struggling to find his identity. I think this might be the closest to a “coming of age” story that I’ve written so far. That wasn’t intentional but considering the structure of the story, it was a natural fit.
Legacy - Character Profile -Mastrodai
The biggest change from book one to book two is the inclusion of Mastrodai’s point of view. Mastrodai is Leopold’s alien lover and quasi-master (if you read the first book, you know what I mean). This was one of the greater challenges that came with the sequel. While I certainly had a solid idea of who Mastrodai was in the first book, I was forced to stop and consider his thoughts and his own struggles, ones that Leopold might not be privy to.
Legacy - Character Profile - Leopold
Legacy is book two in my “Saga of the Bold People” 6-book sci-fi/romance series, and the follow-up to my amazingly popular “Leopold.” I am thrilled to finally be able to present it, and I can say that much sweat, blood, and toil went into this one. While “Leopold” took me nearly a decade to finish, “Legacy” was about a year. I think. Hard to keep track sometimes. And they are basically the same length! Whew.