A.J. Maguire

Tag: Writers

  • Controversies on BookTok – 2024 Edition

    While I do not post videos on TikTok, I do follow the #booktok conversations going on over there. I do this for a number of reasons, not the least of which is to discover what readers are enjoying and get some book recommendations for my reading pile. I’ve gotten several books from these videos and many of them are quite delightful.

    Maybe one day I will post a video of my own highlighting a review or two.

    Big Maybe.

    The other reason I follow BookTok is to keep myself abreast of the current goings on and wider impact that novels are having on society. Which is good because writing is a very lonely venture most days and if I don’t pay attention then I could write something that people would consider blind to current events. Such as the current issues revolving around National Novel Writing Month, which has saddened me to no end.

    If you’re not familiar with what’s going on with National Novel Writing Month, suffice to say that I hope they tighten their security for the youth who may still frequent that site. I find that error from 2023 far more egregious than the AI conversation they’re in now, but I do have thoughts on the use of AI insofar as the creation of written works goes.

    I try not to judge other people for their choices. Lord knows that’s not my job. I’ve got enough to deal with for myself without judging anyone else, so let’s put that out there first, alright? So everything I’m about to say, know that it comes from a place of honest self-reflection as to why I personally won’t use AI in writing.

    Any writer will tell you that writing is hard.

    It’s really hard.

    Most days I feel like a complete nincompoop and illiterate when staring at the blank page before me. But the truth is, I will never get better as a writer if I don’t do the work. If I am not brainstorming my own creations, then my imagination will stop developing on its own. If am not putting the hours in with words on the page, then my use of language will never develop.

    For me, AI cuts a creative corner that will severely hinder my ability to craft my works.

    That’s not even getting into the conversation about where AI learns to “write” too.

    Reminder, this is not coming from a place of judgement, but those are my two cents on the matter.

    There are other controversies swinging around BookTok that I’ve taken note of, such as the concept of Booktok and the books popular therein somehow not being intellectual enough and contributing to a lesser quality of writing/reading. Honestly, that controversy is nothing new. They have just relabeled it to encompass BookTok instead of merely genre fiction.

    To that controversy I have one thing to say: Leave people alone.

    Of the myriad ways we can entertain ourselves in this year of our Lord 2024, the fact that they’re picking up a book instead of video gaming, staring at their phone, or watching movies/shows , is amazing. Do you know how many people in my own social circle shrug and admit they don’t like reading or don’t have the time for reading or… whatever the reason they have for not picking up a book?

    Leave people alone. There is space enough in this wide world for you to let them have their own tastes and preferences. It really has nothing to do with you.

  • Settings and Mood Boards

    I learned a new trick and it seems to be seriously helping me with descriptions of the setting in particular, so naturally I’m going to share it here in case it helps someone else with their writing. Settings are often a struggle for me. I have read books on writing and gone to classes on writing and they always give this detailed list of the things you should know about your settings, and to be frank… these make my eyes gloss over.

    I’m not saying you don’t need to know that there are pock marks in the western wall where your character’s father once practiced knife throwing, I’m saying that making a list of these things was not helpful for me. And I’m saying that making such lists turned out to be a waste of my time because they rarely got looked at beyond the initial effort it took to make them.

    If these sorts of things work for you, then I applaud you and I am so glad. Seriously. Whatever works for you to get words on the page is what you should do.

    So what’s my trick?

    Images.

    Literal images.

    Deviantart and Pinterest are two places you can go to see some seriously beautiful artwork. This does come with the warning that oftentimes you’ll start browsing and before you know it, an hour has past, so make sure you go in with an idea of what you’re looking for.

    Now, for this next part, make sure you are looking at FREE images or that you’re not yanking someone’s hard work without somehow paying for it. Artists spend just as long on their craft as we writers do ours, so be respectful.

    What I do, is I start a Mood Board on Canva.

    I do love Canva. You can have a free account and do a lot with it. A lot of my marketing images and things come from Canva.

    Anyway, I start a Mood Board on Canva. They even have Mood Board templates you can use.

    Using the images that I stumbled across in my DeviantArt/Pinterest dungeon crawl (with permission if they are not free) I then fill that Mood Board. OR, I use MidJourney to help me create some images.

    Yes, Midjourney is an AI art generator. Yes, I understand there is a huge debate going on about AI in the arts. No, I’m not going to expound on this debate. Suffice to say, budgets are tight and if I could hire a flesh and blood artist to do some of these then I most certainly would. These images are for my personal use as I write/edit my drafts and I have found them supremely helpful.

    I digress.

    Here you can see a Mood Board that was made for a setting in Nora and the Winter King. Notice that I’ve paid particular attention to specific rooms, and that there is a distinct feel that all of the rooms follow. Identifying what is working for this setting is important. In this case, it’s a lot of stonework, a dusty and neglected feel while still be cozy in places.

    Oftentimes the very act of creating this mood board is enough to settle me into the scene I’m about to write, but having it on hand to reference as I go through the draft is helpful. Especially if I’m coming back to a setting that was left behind or returning to the work to begin edits.

    Anyway, that’s my trick. It seems to work better than making lists, at least for me, and it allows me to sort of “sit” in that setting and feel it.

    Happy writing, everyone!

  • Limbo Week – May 2024

    For those just joining us, I finished a manuscript at the end of April and have since been in what I like to call Limbo.

    Limbo is where I get to consume all the fiction I possibly can.

    Books. Movies. Video games. If it has a story, I’ll consume it.

    That’s not to say I’m not reading books during other weeks of the year. This is just the week where I get to spoil myself rotten with it.

    Reading and experiencing stories is so very important for writers. I know there are some out there who claim they are too busy writing to read, and I have to admit this makes me cringe. Because if you’re not reading then you have no idea what is being said out in society. Sure, you might get the highlights from the news, but there’s a deeper conversation happening in society and the only way you can access it is by reading.

    This is why I have been focused on bouncing Book Reviews up here lately. It’s not just because I enjoyed a book, it’s because I’m joining that deeper conversation.

    Even if that deeper conversation happens to be Romantasy novels with Vikings and Fae creatures running about.

    As I head into this next week, Limbo is officially over and work is beginning for Nora and the Winter King. I’m still hopeful that this is the final full length novel for Nora’s storyline, and that I will be able to deliver both Siren Song and Winter King within a couple months of each other.

    This is because Siren Song ends on a bit of a cliffhanger.

    My first ever cliffhanger, guys. I’m not sure if I’m excited or worried.

    Anyway, Limbo is closing out and I have some more reading to do.

    Happy Writing, everyone.

  • Ventures Into Fairy – Nora Grayson Edition

    When I set out to write Nora’s story I did not know what I was getting into. I had a vague premise – marital counselor for supernatural creatures – and a sort of Clue setting for Werewolf Wedding. I quite like the game Clue, and massive old houses with loads of history, and since my other books were feeling a bit too heavy, I wanted to have some fun with this one.

    It did not take long for me to realize I had a lot more here than Clue meets Fairy Creatures, but I fought the desire to dig further because I didn’t want to write a series. I wanted a standalone novel and I struggled mightily to force this narrative into submission.

    (Insert manic laughter here.)

    The fact is, I had too much fun with Nora and her world. I’m still having boat loads of fun, in fact, and I sincerely hope I continue in this vein.

    For those who haven’t read Nora and the Werewolf Wedding, the basic summary is that Fairy was created so that Bright folk (aka Fae creatures) could hide from humanity, who were hunting them for their magic. Bright creatures can access the way to Fairy through any body of water, and make frequent crossings between Fairy and Earthside.

    With Nora and the Duke of Autumn being released in paperback next month, it seemed prudent to mention that we dive heavily into Fairy in this book.

    Nora has not been to Fairy, for reasons you’ll have to explore in the books, and her brief forays into Fairy in Werewolf Wedding leave a whole wide world out there unexplored. Happily, this gets remedied with Duke of Autumn. Nora not only gets to see more of Fairy, she gets to meet — you guessed it — Fae nobility.

    Why did I choose Autumn for the setting?

    Uh… because it’s my favorite.

    I also revisited one of my favorite steampunk settings with a dirigible. However, fans of Witch-Born will notice this dirigible is a bit different, particularly with the amount of fairy creatures and the heavier focus on steam powered items on board.

    Among the more challenging aspects of writing Fairy has been the need to show a kind of mish-mash of cultures. Having Fairy lean on steampunk has been a fun physical means of differentiating between it and Earthside, however, and I look forward to continuing in this vein. It shows that humans have still left their fingerprints on Fairy, and while they have many traditions they call The Fairy Way, there are still some bits of technology that have been fused with magic to make their way of life a little easier.

    I could go into a deep dive in the books, but I have chosen not to. The books already edge toward the super high end of the word count spectrum and while it’s fun for me to know Nicola Tesla was a wizard in my world setting, it might bog down the pacing.

    But hey, the series has at least one more book for me to write. Maybe it’ll come to light in the narrative naturally.

  • About Character Growth – Part 2

    My first post about Character Growth dealt with Nora Grayson in particular. She is the main protagonist in the Nora Grayson Adventures and my focus was on how she has grown over the past several books. Currently I’m drafting Book 3 and outlining Book 4, so I have a pretty good idea what she looks like at the end of the series compared to book 1.

    Today I’m looking at other characters in the books, which might have some mild spoilers but I’ll try to lean on the HINTING side instead of the outright telling you side of things. Because we all know I’m not big on spoiling books.

    First, I’ll say that some of the comments from Werewolf Wedding have been about the team in the CEB. That’s Lieutenant Eucilla Norwind, Derrick King, Elliot Cade, Gretchen, and Sam Witters.

    Basically, people want to know more about them.

    And I get it.

    Because I do too.

    I should preface this with saying I am a kind of hybrid author. I do a basic worldbuilding bit to start, and then the story surprises me with the details as I move forward. Which means I take a LOT of notes as I write. And I have a Story Bible that is constantly being referenced to make sure I haven’t broken canon already set in stone.

    Fun note: the Story Bible is the messiest thing you’ll ever see. It’s my creative brain at its finest, handwritten in multiple shades of ink with circles and highlights and extra punctuation. The outlines are done in here. And the read-through notes when I prep for editing.

    Why is this important?

    Because it means I only had a hint of who these people were when I started. They grew with the story and told me who they were mid-draft.

    Now, this won’t work for every author out there. Some need to know everything from which kind of peanut butter their character prefers to how many times a day they think about their mother. And that’s fine. That works for them.

    It does not work for me.

    Drafting is a conversation between me and the characters. It’s where they show me who they are and tell me their story. If I knew everything going in, I’d get bored and stop writing.

    Now, writing in a series means I have to keep a tighter grip on things. Each of them have to grow, have to show a little more of who they are, without breaking what’s already established. So… I do a weird thing, and maybe it’ll work for someone else but… here it goes.

    I have Scrivener. And Scrivener has this amazing tool where you make character sheets. Before I start each book, I go through that messy Story Bible and type up what has already been established for each character. It’s my Filtered Download of the character, if you will. And then I go through my outline and put what I call CBP — Character Beat Points — at each chapter.

    CBP’s are comments and/or questions aimed at each character. Things like; How does Gretchen feel about the pawn shop? or Don’t forget Sam is still new to Earthside and doesn’t get a lot of the customs.

    And then, you know… I draft the first version.

    The CBP’s are mostly there to instigate questions that can be explored as the narrative unfolds. Oftentimes they lead to more interesting questions that get fleshed out between draft one and draft four.

    Anyway, that’s what I do. Maybe it’ll help someone else.

    Happy Writing!

  • About Character Growth – Part One

    As we’re gearing up for the release of Nora and the Duke of Autumn, I can’t help but see the differences in Nora Grayson’s character from book one. She’s still got a clear sense of right and wrong, her values haven’t changed even if everything about her life has been shattered, and she still has the compassion and empathy that I wanted to highlight in the first book.

    For those just joining us, Nora was inspired by the character of Deanna Troi from Star Trek the Next Generation. In particular, the empathy that Deanna portrayed on the bridge of the Star Ship Enterprise is something I snagged and enhanced for the character of Nora Grayson. Only instead of making her an alien she is, obviously, a half human magic wielder.

    Because it wouldn’t be a Fantasy novel otherwise.

    The idea was to let a character with Deanna Troi’s talents stand front and center of her own work, because emotions are important and we should allow ourselves to process them rather than… You know, bury them away and pretend they don’t exist.

    SO!

    How has Nora changed from Book One to Book Two?

    SPOILERS AHEAD! Turn back now if you don’t want to know.

    …

    Still here?

    Alright, for starters, in book one Nora was confronted with the fact that her two caretakers – Nana Bess and Uncle Martin – are criminals. This eye-opener has wrought a lot of strife in her. She feels stupid, and every new part of Fairy that she learns about is feeding her rage at having been duped.

    Book Two has her struggling to find a sense of self again. There’s some self-pity in there because, well, who wouldn’t be ashamed? But this second book is all about overcoming that shame and finding the strength to make something new. By the end of Book Two, she has more control over her own life and is ready to start building again.

    Which is why Book Three is so very, very romantic.

    Ahem.

    Gird your loins, people. The romance that has already begun is about to take center stage.

    And that’s the only spoiler I’m going to give you.

    Nora and the Werewolf Wedding is available on Amazon in Paperback, Kindle, and Kindle Unlimited.

    Nora and the Duke of Autumn is available for pre-order on Amazon Kindle.

  • What Sort of Author Am I?

    When my first novel was published, it was labeled as fantasy romance, so I always imagined that must be what sort of author I was.

    A fantasy romance author.

    For those who have read Sedition, I think many of you will note that while there is a romance between Nelek and Trenna and it does have an impact on what those characters end up doing, the book as a whole is not what many would call “Romantasy” these days.

    Maybe there’s a difference between “Romantasy” and “Fantasy Romance” but the popular moniker seems to encompass them both these days, which is why I’m sitting here today, pondering my writing style and preference.

    If you need a reference, Sarah J Maas’s books are all labeled Romantasy. And yes, I can see why. You have the relationship of two main characters as a centerpiece that works in conjunction with the larger fantasy plot. The world building on the Crescent City novels alone is beautifully done and I quite adore this author and her works, and will continue to read them as they are released.

    A quick bit of research suggests that fantasy romance is fantasy with a significant romantic element, whereas romantasy seems to be a romance set in a fantasy backdrop. Which… well…

    Alright. I think the main difference is going to be focused on exactly how significant an element that romance is in a fantasy novel to let properly categorize it. If you’re comparing the books of Sedition and A Court of Thorns and Roses, the two are super-duper similar. Focus is on the world and the characters in it, with a romance blossoming that the characters end up having to fight for.

    But once we move on from those first books in the two series, things start to look very different. A Court of Mist and Fury reveals a much larger romance, one that begins to shape that series into something very identifiable ad Romantasy. You’re showing up to see how these two come together and stay together through a great deal of strife.

    Saboteur sticks to the same romance introduced in Sedition and while there are some questions on how they are going to survive together, the main thrust of the book is centered on the world itself. So I can see a major split between what I write and what is popularly called Romantasy.

    I am not shy in admitting that there are romances in all of my novels. I am a romantic at heart. I love when two characters really know one another, accept all of the good and the bad, and choose to make a go of things. You are always going to see a romantic element in my books but I admit that these romantic elements are normally treated as just that, elements of the story and not the story itself.

    Except for Nora’s books.

    The second novel in Nora’s series really opens up the romantic element. And the third is just unabashedly about these two characters recognizing what they have is special.

    So what kind of author does this make me?

    I suppose… just an author.

    Sure, the romantic elements are there through most of them… Tapped wouldn’t be nearly so much fun if Jorry and Seach weren’t constantly duking it out over who gets the final say on board the ship… And when I turn my attention back to Nelek and Trenna I suspect we’re going to see a lot more of that romantic element come into play.

    But at the end of the day, it’s all words on a page. It’s all craft.

    So here’s me, nodding to the romances in my books and getting back to work.

  • The Importance of Having Fun (With Writing)

    Nora and the Werewolf Wedding will be out for sale on WEDNESDAY the 9th of August!

    Hurray and happy days!

    I absolutely love Nora and her books. She is a lot of fun. And the world she is in is a lot of fun to write. Writing her first book took longest because I was worldbuilding a lot, but her second book took me 4 months to draft. And because I’m editing in preparation for next year’s publication date, I just re-read it and still love it.

    These books are like Jim Butcher’s Dresden files meets Sarah J Maas’s Court of Thorns and Roses and I really am having a blast writing them. And it’s showing in the work. I know because of the feedback I have been getting from readers. They are having fun reading Nora, which tells me I’m doing something right.

    I don’t know how other writer’s work but for me, if I’m not having fun then the work crawls along and I often don’t finish. I move on to something else that is fun and then I dissect the old book and implement the elements I enjoyed into the new work. Which is a legitimate means of morphing your craft, but the point still stands — You have got to be having fun.

    If you’re not having fun, if you’re not engaged and lying awake at night wondering how your character is going to make it through the obstacles in front of them, then I can guarantee that your readers won’t be either.

    This isn’t to say there have been no roadblocks.

    I spent four days grouching about a menu because I had no idea what to serve on board a dirigible.

    I spent a week trying to figure out the ending of Werewolf Wedding. (My husband helped me brainstorm during one of our drives. You guys can thank him for like… everything that happens there.)

    I spent two months revising Werewolf Wedding to make it steampunk 1890’s, and then another 4 months returning it to contemporary urban fantasy.

    But from start to finish, I have been having fun with the story. Even in the middle of the roadblocks. And I am excited to see what comes next, which motivates me to be at the computer long after I should have closed it for the day.

    There are some books that I’ve written that were a grind from the mid-point to the end. Some halted completely for months. In these cases, I have to start from the beginning, remind myself why I started the story in the first place, and ignite that joy again before I start writing. Because readers can sense when you’ve lost your way too and no amount of professionalism is going to cover that.

    So here is me, diving back into Nora’s world to get Book #3 Drafted. In the meantime, the first book is out August 9th! And here’s the placeholder cover for Book #2.

  • July Round Robin – Character Arcs

    The good people at Round Robin Blog Hop are having a conversation about Character Arcs this month and I am happy to join in. The question is how important character arcs are in our works and how/if we plan these things out.

    I am going to admit that until recently I have not paid much attention to character arcs in my story. I’ve mostly been along for the ride with my stories and delving into arcs and structures is still relatively new. Some of my characters have made the journey naturally, and I’m mildly proud about having stumbled into success there.

    Trenna, for instance, begins in Sedition as a wild-hearted swordswoman who can’t commit to a relationship or responsibility and ends with a fiancé and the burden of leadership.

    Johanna Rorry from the Tapped series begins as emotionally unavailable and ends in a committed relationship. (Yes, I enjoy love stories. I will probably always write them.)

    But both of these examples happened on accident as the story progressed.

    The novel I am working on right now is different. I have CHARTS for this one. Which is weird for me, but I have found it extremely useful. My two protagonists – Jack and Ryssa Rose – come from very different backgrounds and their voices need to be just as different. Their emotional journeys collide at times, but for the most part it’s felt like I’ve been telling two stories as one.

    It’s… interesting.

    But their arcs are so very important.

    I don’t do spoilers, but Jack starts the story as someone who is ready to leave the world behind. He has stepped away from his father and the woman he loves because he believes it is the only way to keep them safe. By the end of the story he has to come to a place where he understands that love will always have risk, and it is better to have taken that risk than to run away from it.

    Ryssa Rose starts the story as deeply focused on winning. There’s no room for failure for her. But by the end of the story she has to come to a place where she understands that failure is, in and of itself, a kind of winning. Because you learn who you are when you’ve fallen flat on your face. There’s more, of course, but I don’t want to spoil anything when I haven’t even gotten a chance to shop this book around.

    For the nitty-gritty of the character arcs, I will admit that I started using what David Farland put in his book Million Dollar Outlines. I don’t fill ALL of it out because I need the joy of discovery while I’m drafting, but by the time I go through the 3rd draft I should have it all noted down.

    Check out what my fellow authors have to say about Character Arcs!

    Anne Stenhouse http://annestenhousenovelist.wordpress.com

    Connie Vines http://mizging.blogspot.com/

    Diane Bator http://dbator.blogspot.ca/

    Helena Fairfax http://www.helenafairfax.com/blog

    Marci Baun http://www.marcibaun.com/blog/

    Victoria Chatham http://www.victoriachatham.com

    A.J. Maguire https://ajmaguire.wordpress.com/ ( YOU ARE HERE)

    Skye Taylor http://www.skye-writer.com/blogging_by_the_sea

  • When Social Media Goes Right

    I am not awesome with social media.

    But other platforms are used for my professional self – Twitter, Instagram, etc. – and unless the weekend trip included a eureka moment for a work in progress then, quite frankly, I doubt anyone truly cares. Everyone has struggles. Everyone has opinions. NOT everyone wants to hear about my struggles and my opinions.

    Side note: Opinions change as new information is absorbed and thus I find it rather silly to blast what I think at any given moment. Often I am wrong. Often that opinion changes drastically. I would prefer to give myself the grace of being able to change in private rather than get strangled by society.

    All of that said… I have one moment when social media went right for me.

    We were having a weird chat about mashups that we would love to see. I believe the conversation derived from the Lucifer television show and how amusing it was that the devil had a therapist. And then, somehow, we wound up with supernatural creatures needing a marital counselor. And Nora Grayson was born in my head. She just showed up.

    Gentle. Quirky. A little lost. Chocolate loving. Sassy. And an empath.

    Because I love Deanna Troi from Star Trek and I did, in fact, wish to see her in a story of her own. So I snagged the empath ability and shoved it into Nora’s already mildly neurotic mess and wham!

    I had a story.

    Now, I will admit that the original intent was straight murder-mystery with supernatural creatures. In my head it was Clue meets Fairy creatures, but what ended up on paper was a little bigger. Because… c’mon. If Fairy creatures are living next door, wouldn’t you want to investigate a little more than one book would permit?

    So now I’m sitting with two books written and a third getting outlined and I owe it all to that original conversation on social media. I have to put a major shout to the writing community on the Twitter platform. Whatever your opinions are about the swap of ownership, the writing community got me to Nora and for that I am grateful.

    Pre-Orders Available for Kindle, or you can snag the book in Hardback or Paperback from Amazon!