Iskander: Blog

I am dividing my writing time between two novel length projects - the first set in England during WW2 (working title Mossie Girl) and the second is Science Fiction, set on a planet close to the galactic centre (working title Myr and the Wyrms).

Both of these are now about three chapters in and it's time to get some feedback. I hope this will help me decide which one I should prioritise. So, if you sign up to my newsletter, you'll get access to these early chapters - and I'm looking forward to your feedback.

So get yourself a quick Christmas read - sign up to my fortnightly newsletter using the link in my profile!

Both of these will end up here on Stories on Line in the fullness of time.

Do you read prologues and epilogues to stories if there is one?

I've been reading an article about this and the sentiment seems to be that readers don't like them much.

Whilst I've not written prologues for any of my books, there are epilogues to Colette and Through different Eyes. From the feedback I've received, the epilogues rounded the stories.

The epilogues to these two stories mostly describe the same event - a rededication of the Ravensbruck concentration camp memorial - but from different perspectives; the epilogue to Colette is written from her mother's perspective and that for TDE is written from Col's mother's perspective (Mutti Frida).

Both epilogues run high on emotion which I found difficult to write with conviction but not overdo things.

I think I succeeded - but I'd love to hear your perspective, so please send me an email or a comment in the stories.

This weekend I'm off to my first ever writer's convention - and I've book a publicity table as well... I'm both nervous and excited as I don't really know what to expect!

Wish me luck, please!

My recent novel Through different Eyes is scoring well at 8.74 (and still rising).

So it's well worth a read! It's a Premier members only story - but it is available on Bookapy as a complete eBook (and as a paperback elsewhere)

Why not check it out!

I'm now working on several new projects - join my newsletter (link in my profile) to stay up to date, read excerpts and extras!

As always, take care of you and yours,

Robert
(Iskander)

With Through different Eyes complete, it only remains for me to thank you for reading. It's pretty hard for a Premier members only story to gain enough readers to feature in the top lists - but thanks to your votes, Through different Eyes is now #4 in the Top 50 Completed Serials, by Rating, in the Last 30 Days.

I'd love for Through different Eyes to make it into the Top 50 Long Stories This Year (it would be #13 at present) and even the Top 50 Classic Long Stories - but to do that, it needs 100 votes - and it's not there yet although it's scoring high enough.

Interestingly, 202 people have put it into their library - so it would be tremendous if some more of those people would vote.

If you would like a peek at what I'm working on next (three projects but I've not yet decided which to prioritise), hop over to my profile and join my mailing list using the link there. You will get some previews over the next few months and a chance to have your say.

Once again - many thanks for reading, and please vote if you haven't already done so!

Robert Hart
(Iskander)

The epilogue for Through different Eyes has been posted. The story is related by Mutti Frida, who revisits Ravensbrück for a rededication of the camp memorial in 1975.

I am also proud to tell you that Through different Eyes has made it to the longlist (about 50 books) in the PageTurner 2023 writing awards. There's a way to go yet, but even this is rewarding - as are your continuing votes here on Stories-on-Line.

Thank you.

I looked down at the letter in my hand. It invited me, Frida Schmidt (née Karpinski), to attend the rededication of the Ravensbrück Concentration Camp memorial. I watched, detached, as the letter wobbled, exaggerating my trembling hand.

Seeking the chair, I groped behind me and fell onto the seat.

As a nearly sixteen-year-old, I had run from those gates into the cold spring of 1945. The SS guards inexplicably herded several thousand German nationals from the camp. I’d never returned; nor did I wish to. I knew too well its miasma of suffering, cruelty and evil. The camps had drained the life from my mother through a decade of imprisonment, forced labour and starvation as she struggled to keep me alive.

I dropped the letter on my desk; the memories spread the trembling across my body.

Breathe, Frida, the way Col does.

This brings to an end the stories in the Cold War and before series. It's been quite a journey as these stories mark my debut as a published author. I started writing Through my Eyes. Again. in October 2019 and, I hope, I've learned much since those first tentative steps.

If you are interested in staying current with my writing, please drop me an email here on Stories on Line. I'll be happy to add you to my newsletter. You can also join my discord (see my profile).

Thanks for coming on this journey with me...

... and don't forget to vote!

Iskander

(Robert Hart)