Just submitted Chapter 14, sorry it took a week longer than expected and the editing hasn't been as careful as you should expect. As I am writing 2 serials on two different sites at the moment, I know the final chapter of Book 2, which will take 2 weeks, but it will tidy up some loose ends and tee up the final two tasks which will launch Book 3.
My first blog. I want to introduce you to a new series Coming soon to SOL, entitled "The Dragonskin Chronicles"
This story is presently incomplete at about 90,000,words, but still about 20000 to 23000 words to write in first draft and edit. I have worked on this project on and off for 6 years and been frustrated by my inability to complete. The first of the 3 books was a novella of about 13,000 words published in 2015 by Five 59 Publishing as part of an anthology of fantasy stories about different realms. At the outset the novella was meant to be a one-off, but I left it with a possible continuation. While writing Book 2, I was able to flesh the original out a little to 17,700 words and published it again in 2018 elsewhere.
I am hoping by publishing the series of three books here in weekly parts, that this will focus my attention and give me the impetus to finish all three books by the end of May this year. I have managed this before for two other long drawn-out project novels and finished what ended up as substantial stories within a reasonably limited timescale. I think I just need to give myself a good kick up the backside to launch this particular story and get it finished by the end of June.
The story is set out in a series of 3 Books, the first is complete and in the form of a novella, the major part of the second Book is almost finished at first draft, with about 500 words of each of the final three chapters outlined, while the third book is merely outlined in 1000 words and expected to end up quite short at about 11,000 words.
The genre is romantic fantasy, a Tolkeinian world of orcs, elves, dwarves, goblins, dragons, sorcerers, witches and Man, occupying a world of suspicion, fears, lawlessness and unchecked genocide. However, is this world real or fantasy, as it seems to be nothing but a day dream by a man living in what appears to be a parallel world quite familiar to us in 21st century Earth.
I hope this schedule can be achieved:
SOL 1st week of April
Book the First is "Twin Realms" 17700 words.
Korwyn is a Man, once of high rank but has spent the last decade roaming the known world as a common "Merk", with his battle-axe or broadsword for hire, but also tracking down the dragon that killed his father and all his contemporaries. A tip-off enables him to reach the dragon's rocky island hideout, slay the dragon but has to sit out the winter storms before escaping the island in a boat made of Dragon's skin. Ashamed to return home empty-handed after so long absent, he takes on a quest to rescue a Dwarf Princess taken by Orcs. Here is where our story starts, where he meets Zyndyr, a she-Elf, also a dragon-slayer, who has been forced to serve the dwarves for killing the last living dragon in similar acts of revenge. Korwyn hates Dragons and carries an old Elf wound and a hatred of Elves. The third MC in our story is Clive, lives in the world we know and sees Korwyn as a fantasy in his day dreams, thus somehow establishing a link between them.
Book the Second is "Dragon Nest" 72,000 words in 12 chapters written so far and 2 or 3 chapters to write before completion, it is a story of warriors, battles and fantastic beasts, spells and betrayal. The first 2 chapters will be published with the 1st Book, which describe the raising of an Army which unites differences and seeks justice. While in another realm more familiar to us, normal domestic drama takes centre stage, an interesting contrast.
Chapter 1 An Army 5800 words
Chapter 2 Home Truths 8800 words
SOL 2nd week of April
Chapter 3 Attack! 7500 words
Chapter 4 Rescue! 6666 words
SOL 3rd week of April
Chapter 5 Beyond the Gorge 4700 words
Chapter 6 Advance 4100 words
SOL 4th week of April
Chapter 7 Parents Return 6000 words
Chapter 8 Pylanatehk 7080 words
SOL 1st week of May
Chapter 9 Dungeon 4100 words
Chapter 10 Dragon Nest 5900 words
SOL 2nd week of May
Chapter 11 Breakout 4400 words
Chapter 12 Showdown 5600 words
SOL 3rd week of May
Chapter 13 Trial 3000 words to write
Chapter 14 Coronation 3000 words to write
Chapter 15 Headland Reunion 3000 words to write
SOL 4th week of May
Book the Third is "Realm Without Dragons" only 500 words and in outline notes only
3 chapters planned only 850 words written, expected to be around 11,000 words
Chapter 1 Realm of Elves 3000 words
Chapter 2 Realm of Clive 5000 words
Chapter 3 Home 2000-3000 words
Lastly, here is a 300 word teaser from the start of Book 1:
Chapter 1
Blearn Mountain
Orc blood!
To Lord Korwyn the hint on the breeze registered metallic on his tongue, Orc blood! He stopped his stealthy climb up through the sun seared rocks to listen, to better hear what was befalling upwind. Yes! It was clear now. The unmistakable chink of steel on steel accompanied that rancid scent, somewhere to the right side of his selected route up the side of the mountain. Perhaps some other desperate merk had been sent on this fool's errand, to save a princess from a fate worse than death. The battle might provide him welcome cover to slip unnoticed past any Orc guards and into the bowels of the mountain, he mused, to where the Princess Myr's amulet was still giving off a faint signal. But rather than move on, he hesitated ... just for a moment.
***
"Clive! Clive! Wake up," Carole insisted, shaking Clive awake none too gently by his shoulder, "honestly, five minutes after you've had your tea and you're away off into your own little world of goodness knows where again."
"Well, I can dream can't I?" he muttered, adding to himself, 'It's the only place around here where I can get any respect.'
"Well, shift your arse, sunshine, we've got parents' evening at the school with Michael's form teacher in twenty minutes. He needs to get on if he's going to pick up a decent job when he leaves school."
Day dreamer, suburbanite, engineering office order processor, Clive was reminded by talk of jobs to worry about the possibility of his own redundancy, with half his department having departed over the past few months already. Two of his ablest staff had taken the less-than-generous redundancy package that had been offered in the first round of job cuts, knowing they already had other more secure jobs to go to, and one other departure left through the natural wastage of accepting early retirement.