I stopped at one of our local Spirit Halloween stores earlier this week and found this PERFECT crow mask! Something to wear to next year’s Wild Prairie Fur Con (our city’s furry fandom convention); if I’m able, I also intend to create a small set of cardboard wings and a cardboard crow’s tail to dress up in for the event. (I wouldn’t call myself a furry proper, but I do feel a strong connection to crows and would feel much more in vogue at the WPFC with those accessories.)
I’ve had a couple of friends who have psych degrees offer to take part in my research, so if I can find one more psych grad who’s willing to take part, I’ll be doing wonderfully well. 🙂
The plan is to send out the questionnaire below, then once the email answers come back I will possibly arrange for a 30 minute to 1 hour interview with each participant, to see if any further information shakes loose in the one-on-one conversation. Each participant will be offered an honorarium of $25-$50, plus inclusion in the Acknowledgements section of the published novel.
***************************************
Dear [Name],
Thank you for your time and attention, and for your willingness to help me out with this essential research for my upcoming novel, ‘Where Darkness Falls”.
“Where Darkness Falls” is a science fiction/urban fantasy novel set in Chicago in the year 2038. The male main character, Jeremy Anderson, is a Manifester: that is, a human capable of manifesting supernatural abilities based on his religious beliefs. Jeremy is a Southern Baptist, so his abilities include the gift of prophecy, the power to detect the energy of other Manifesters, and the creation of the Armour of God (around himself and anybody else he chooses to protect).
Jeremy has a B.Sc. or B.A.. in Psychology from Oklahoma City University, concentrating on either behavioural management or social psychology. (Or he might have a major in Psychology and a minor in Sociology.) His goal was to prepare for induction into the Department of Paranormal Investigation (DPNI), which is a secret government agency that employs Manifesters to protect the general public from supernatural threats. In particular, he wanted to focus on acquiring skills that would (1) help him to control individuals and crowds, and (2) enable him to direct and redirect interviews and conversations in order to gain as much information as possible while revealing as little as possible about himself.
The single word that would best describe Jeremy is “strict”. He is devout in his faith, intensely self-controlled, and as self-contained as possible. A painful episode of personal betrayal during his university years has left him highly suspicious of the motivations of those around him. On a purely personal level, he consciously uses his psychology training to protect himself and to preserve his privacy.
I do know that Jeremy has a soft spot for children and spends part of his free time working with troubled youth in Chicago’s inner city, so it’s likely he’s taken at least some basic classes in child psychology and childhood therapy.
POTENTIAL QUESTIONS
1) As a psychology graduate, what training would you consciously use if you wanted to prevent other people from getting too close to you?
2) What training would you use to draw as much information as possible out of a person you were interviewing?
3) What training would you use to draw as much information as possible out of a person you were having a “casual” conversation with?
4) What training would you use to redirect a discussion (either interviews or conversations) to prevent the other person from learning about you?
5) If you wanted to manipulate an individual into doing something that you want them to do, which behavioural theory would you consider most effective?
6) What type of courses would Jeremy take if he wanted to work with troubled youth after graduation?
7) What social psychology courses (or other types of courses) might be particularly useful for him, as a government agent?
8) What degree, or degree combo in a 4-year period, do you think might be most helpful for somebody of Jeremy’s temperament and professional ambitions?
9) Given Jeremy’s pessimistic nature, is there a particular type of psychological theory that he might feel drawn to? (The work of Skinner, for example.)
10) Again, given Jeremy’s view of humanity as fundamentally “fallen” and untrustworthy, is there a particular type of psychological theory that he might consider to be complete nonsense?
I hate this question because I’d rather talk about books or crocheting or anything but me. I love to write, crochet, spend time with my family. I’ve written since I was in my late 30s getting articles, essays, and poems published. 2014 I started publishing my books. I tried the traditional route and had some interest but no publisher went the distance. Therefore I’m self-published.
My family is very important to me. I have three adult daughters and a husband. He and I have been together for 37 years. My daughters are my pride and joy! They are also my loudest and best cheerleaders.
I started out just wanting to publish my stories but after my daughters encouraged me I took my scribbled patterns and started publishing them.
Which one? Without fail, I almost always have three or four projects going on. Right now I’m finishing up Wayfarer Resolve – next in my Wayfarer series – makes book 18 with a nice short story prequel. This one is in the early production phase. Wild Magic 2 (I don’t have an actual name for this yet) is in the edit phase. This adds to the story of Mel and Leland. I hope to address some of the questions left by the first book. Do Mel and Leland become lovers? Will the two provinces go to war over the use of magic? Seven Sisters (working title only – maybe) is in the writing stage. I’m about two thirds of the way done with it. This is another sci fi / fantasy type book. There are other starts that I tinker with but none are as active as the three above. In general, I write in science fiction and fantasy
Wild Magic is child friendly though some of the concepts are not easy – racism, death, power. Wayfarer is not child friendly. Seven Sisters – I’m not sure yet. It depends on how I edit it. While Wild Magic doesn’t have sex in it, the second one does have some. There are violent scenes in there. Seven Sisters has violence and a few sex scenes. Wayfarer has it all – sex, violence, and language.
Wayfarer – the entire series is my middle daughter’s fault. I finished a project and she said mom write me a space adventure. I did. When she finished reading it, she demanded another… then another… and well you get the idea. As for the details of the book, I’ve grown up on Star Wars and Star Trek and space exploration. I tried to think of what could be different about a space adventure. I knew I wanted to start with a female lead who was less than confident with herself. This lead to well it’s space so who is she? What race? I created the Wayfarer race based on the gypsy or traveler style of life except they were the first explorers of space for the humans. From there everything sort of cascaded into place.
Wild Magic was inspired while driving to and from Indiana (where one of my daughters was living). The landscape in the opening scene of Wild Magic features some of the landscape between Wisconsin, Illinois, and Indiana. From there the story developed. Wild Magic 2 feeds off the landscape for Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Canada.
Seven Sisters just came to me. It’s based in a post-plague Earth type planet. The main character is 18 and trying to protect six younger girls. Aliens (yup went there) are here to help but really they just came to find their true mates. In a chance encounter, Mycos and Lydia meet and he pursues her. From there it just dominoes.
So the theme for all three of these books is racism. Life imitates art or vice versa. Each of these books addresses prejudices between groups. Instead of doing color of skin or religion, it is based on another aspect. In Wayfarer it’s based on species. Some core humans believe they are the superior beings and the rest of the species should cater to them. In Wild Magic it is based on who has magical skills and who doesn’t – though that will be addressed more fully in the third book. In Seven Sisters it’s based on class more than anything though there is conflict between the aliens and the humans. I didn’t intend to bring prejudice and bigotry into the plot so prominently but the characters insisted.
In Wayfarer Resolve, Adara is a mother of four, wife, mixed race (1/2 human and 1/2 Wayfarer) who is made mother of the clans for Wayfarers. She’s a quiet soul. She resists the role of leadership but in this book she settles in and takes a firm hand of how the Wayfarers will be run.
The children in the book play a larger role. It is not easy to write children’s dialog. But they are key in this one as Adara is criticized often for trying to be mom and leader.
The cast of this series is large and the antagonists in the book are multilayered.
Fighting bias, prejudice, and terrorists, Adara and Decker are attacked through their children. Out exploring their sectors of space, Adara settles into being Mathair Naclan – mother of the clans. At the home planets, Hal, Dimitri, and others cope with vandalism, sabotage, and racism. The Humans only group rises with violence and hate to attack the Wayfarers from within.
Decker does not like anyone touching Adara. She’s his and even after all the years they’ve been together he’s protective. One person in particular triggers this response in him. Patr. Patr is an Etienne who has adopted Adara as a sister. Yet, when Decker first met him, he was jealous of the connection. In this book, Patr talks to Adara knowing this will provoke Decker which it does. Decker is fully aware Patr does this on purpose but Patr asks him “What are older brothers for?” This closes a circle for all of them. Decker moves from jealous to brotherly with Patr. Patr’s key in moving their relationship along in the first book. So in this book to have the annoyance Decker feels shift to brotherly affection for Patr closes a cycle in the series.
“Look what we have here boys,” Deming sneered. “A little Wayfarer whore.”
Drake stiffened on hearing the words thrown at his maite saol as he stepped into the workout area. Alma put a hand on his arm and pulled him to the side of the room. “Watch,” she said quietly.
“Oh baby, let’s have a good time,” Dyer said grabbing Mylin by the arm, pulling her close to him with her back to him. Mylin struggled against his strong arms. Stomping on his foot, she jabbed an elbow into his diaphragm. Air whooshed out of him as he bent over, releasing her. He ducked her elbow to his nose as she spun out and away from him.
Deming grabbed her. “You’re not very friendly,” he growled twisting her arm behind her back as he dragged her close to his body. Face to face, he leered at her.
Drake started forward but Alma stopped him again. His face reddened with anger.
“You’re right,” Mylin said. She stepped into Deming. “Let me show you how friendly I can be.” She kneed him in the groin. As he went down, she slammed her forehead into his nose.
“Shit,” Deming said. “Shit.” He grabbed his bloody nose and his groin. He lay on the floor curled into a ball.
“Sorry,” Mylin said not knowing what to do.
“Don’t be sorry,” Owyn asked. “Your two attackers are down. What should you be doing?”
“Running,” Mylin said worrying her lower lips as blood flowed from Deming’s nose.
“Kick ‘em in the balls again,” Alma said striding into the middle of the room. Her stomach tight as she watched Deming writhe on the floor. “Really Dyer was down but not out. You gotta make sure they’re down and out.”
“Vicious much,” Dyer said squatting near Deming.
“What would you do,” Mylin asked turning to Alma.
“You got Dyer to let you go,” Alma said. “The next thing to do is run. Running takes you away from your attackers. You gotta be smart about your running. None of the girly running.”
“She did a better job on Deming,” Owyn said. “However, once free from him, she should have run because now his buddy is down, Dyer’s going to be pissed.”
“You’re confusing me,” Mylin said.
“Any chance you get to run,” Owyn said. “Get the hell away. You’ve got speed and endurance for running.”
“Yes,” Mylin said. “I like to run.”
“Don’t worry about the damage you do,” Owyn said. “Get free and get gone.”
“Alma,” Mylin asked.
“He’s right mostly,” Alma conceded. “Both of them were down enough running might have done it. When you’re going up against a bigger opponent, escape is the best option. The problem with running is they have longer strides than you do. They may catch up to you.”
“May,” Owyn said. “If she’s sneaky, she can get away and look for other ways to protect herself.”
“We can use VR to work on some of those techniques,” Dyer said rubbing his stomach. “Except I think Deming and I are going to let some of the others work with her.”
Telling a story is the easiest part. Sitting with my laptop and putting the details down of a story is easy and fun. When I write I’m transported to a different place. My family has to remind me to eat, shower, sleep. I’ve set alarms so when I have to get up the next day for my day job, I can get to bed at a reasonable time. Otherwise I’ll write until the story is done. I always say my characters talk to me and tell me their story. It feels like that’s exactly what they do.
The hardest part of writing is marketing for me. Writing – or I should say when I talk about writing – is a multilayered process. Yes, it’s about writing and getting a story out of my head. This is the first step. From there writers (especially self-published ones) go into editing, cover design, blurb writing, product development – i.e. all the prep to get it from a rough draft to a final version, to production. Production is all about prepping the files, cover art, blurb for publication. This means creating multiple documents for the manuscript to go into different formats. The steps seem endless and one of them is marketing. Marketing is a lot of hit and miss. There isn’t a lot of cause and effect. What works for one book won’t necessarily work for the next one.
Write your way. Educate yourself to be a better writer. This means learn from your mistakes and always work on improving. Read books on writing and glean from them the things which help you improve. Don’t let people tell you it’s a waste of time. If it brings you joy, do it. Don’t expect to make a fortune. Write. Write. Write.
BONUS INFORMATION
Your FB page: https://www.facebook.com/EileenTroemelAuthor/
Your Twitter link: https://twitter.com/EileenTroemel
Your WordPress (or other) blog: http://dragonsden64.blogspot.com/
Your online book purchasing link(s): https://eileentroemel.weebly.com/
Over on Amazon.uk this time… bringing readers to tears is always a triumph!
And here are two earlier reviews from Amazon.com. 5 stars all around!
Michelle’s “Codex” fan art, second stage! How lovely! 🙂
On the FB group “Writer’s Retreat”, Kim Rodriguez asked:
“I’m having a problem and I need some guidance. I can’t seem to get a story out of my head. I can see it, it replays over and over for hours but I’m looking at a blank page and the words just won’t come out to describe it. I think it has just been swimming around in my head so long that it is so special to me that I’m anxious about making it perfect.
How do you all overcome your “writer’s block”? Is there a secret bypass or a password that I need to enter somewhere in my brain? Please send help, and coffee.”
My reply:
You could try writing any words that come to mind about your story. “Banishment”, “betrayal”, “love”, “business”, etc… then pick one of the words and begin to write about it, in the context of your story. Don’t worry about quality, or whether or not you’ll use what you’re writing — all you’re trying to do right now is get the pipe flowing.
Some people find it useful to hand write each word in the middle of a blank page, then write other words or phrases around it, with lines radiating outwards.
(And re: making it perfect… that will stop you dead in your tracks. First drafts ALWAYS suck — they’re rough, they’re ugly in places, and usually not that pretty everywhere else. But you’ve got to get them out in that rough form before you can polish them in the editing phase. “You can’t edit what you don’t got”, as the saying goes. And trying to make it perfect on the first pass will only succeed in slowing you to a crawl.)
I wish you all the best!
Yesterday’s “Codex” After Party was AWESOME! Quite a few people needed to bow out at the last minute because of a nasty cold that’s making the rounds (and one of the After Party attendees just came down with it this morning), but everybody who was able to attend had a great time. 🙂
I picked up some prizes beforehand, with the intention of holding an “answer questions about the book” contest. More about that later.
Lenora, who had purchased a physical copy of the book from Amazon, was kind enough to bring it along so that I could hold it in my hands for the first time. SO MUCH BLISS!
And of course I was happy to sign her copy. My first time signing my own novel! BLISS CUBED!
Lisa was so sweet — she bought me lunch, including a celebratory piece of caramel cheesecake! (I’m diabetic, but you just have to cut loose once in a while. And when I got home, my blood sugars were as level as if I’d eaten a completely healthy lunch, so hurray!)
Next book-related event: the McNally Robinson book launch on the evening of November 10th!
Today will be an awesome day — because this afternoon the “Codex” After Party is happening at a local restaurant! Between 8-17 people will be attending, and there will be a friendly competition where folks will be paired up to answer “Codex”-related questions. Everybody will win a prize, but the team with the most points will get first pick. :)
Pictures to follow!
The Many Worlds of Lauren Alder 