The Fireside

On this blog, I've sometimes stated that due to the wait times for George R.R. Martin's Ice and Fire books, I may prefer more, smaller books that come out more often; as opposed to fewer, larger books that come out less often. On the basis of the UK paperback editions - where A Storm of Swords and A Dance With Dragons got divided into two smaller books each (a good move, as the font size and paper quality don't suffer because of that) - I'm going to examine what the publishing history would be like, if this division had initially occurred. Before I proceed, a few things: a) This on the assumption that the series will end at 7 books total b) This is on the assumption that Books 6 and 7, once published in paperback in the UK, will also be two books each. Ok, let's get to it: Book 1 - A Game of Thrones (1996) This title would be exactly as it really is, and still published in 1996. Book 2 - A Clash of Kings (1999) Again, same as with Book 1. B...

What follows is TOR's post about the excerpt titled A Fire Within the Ways from the upcoming Unfettered III anthology coming in March: Tor.com is excited to offer an excerpt from “A Fire Within the Ways,” a deleted novella (!!) from The Wheel of Time ,  and a fascinating look into the process of A Memory of Light , the final volume in Jordan’s epic, came together. A Note From Brandon Sanderson During the editing of every novel, you realize that certain scenes just aren’t working. There are a variety of reasons this happens, and while removing those scenes is always one of the most difficult parts of the creation process, it functions like the proverbial pruning of a tree—providing room for other scenes to grow. In the end, the book is better off. That said, I’m always looking for places to show off scenes like these. They not only expose something I find very interesting about the process, but they often have gems in them that I am eager to share. (The scene with Gaul...

This is the first in my series of 'what ifs' in regards to J.R.R. Tolkien, and his writing. In this first installment, I will examine, in speculative fashion, if Tolkien did not write The Hobbit, but opted to finish and publish The Fall of Arthur  in its place.....

There is something I have noticed lately - some big (as in famous, high profile) authors that I follow have been writing smaller works lately. No, this is not a complaint but a trend I have noticed recently, which is most likely coincidence. I am most likely (literally) reading too much into it.  Some of these works are a part of the world of their more famous writings, other times it is unrelated. Here are some examples. The Ocean at the End of the Lane  by Neil Gaiman Great book. My paperback copy clocks in at...178 pages of story, and it begins on page 3. The Wind Through the Keyhole  by Stephen King This is basically The Dark Tower  Book 4.5, but it was written after the seventh book, which is where the story ends. Making this book the 8th one published. my paperback begins on page 3, and is 384 pages. This title is longer than The Gunslinger , though that one is the first book in the series. The rest of the  Dark Tower  books have are longe...

Brandon Sanderson has written a great pep talk to those participating in NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) which is great for aspiring writers, such as myself. To read it, head on over here:  http://nanowrimo.org/pep-talks/brandon-sanderson-2014 Best of luck to everyone! 

The following 'blurb' is my 'Description' as it appears on my facebook page. 

So I bet you're wondering how The Saga of Kalvel is coming.  It's going well, but slow. I'm not putting into as much time writing the series as I'd like. It's still being thought of in my head, and I'm only able to get to it part time, but I'm still planning and writing at the same time. This weekend I'm hoping to binge through some.  I'm working on the third chapter for one character, and would like to start the first chapter for another character. I begun as early as Dec. 2011, and my deadline is August of 2016, but so far I have approx about 40 completed manuscript pages that I'm thinking of going back to until the first draft is completely done.  Now. That's manuscript pages.  If I were total everything I'd ever written about Kalvel, it would be closer to around 100 (give or takr about 15 either direction, some things are in various states.) I've said before and again that the most difficult vo...

Being a fan of A Song of Ice and Fire  is rewarding. However, a lot of patience and faith is required...

What follows is Brandon Sanderson's own account of completing the Wheel of Time series. He published a series of blog posts on his site, here they are collected into one.

Well, I'm coming close to my deadline.That is, my deadline to submit a short story for potential publication is October 29 . The next time I sit down and write, I will be putting A Climb of Chaos , and the rest of Kalvel , aside to work on my short story. After that, I shall resume writing , not jotting down notes, or doing shuffling, but writing those two things around Christmas time.  I've got enough of a lead to write anywhere from 3-5 chapters once I return to Kalvel . And, that's not counting 'extra stuff'. Like I said previously, I'm not deleting anything, just moving it around. So come the end of my final volume, if I still have things to say about Kalvel that couldn't 'fit' or 'work' as part of the main series [either due to length, tone or editing], expect some of those things to pop in a book entitled The Lost Lore of Kalvel , which is a historic-type book, featuring a few short stories of what potentially couldn'...

I have set myself a goal, and I'm going to stick with it. I plan to submit my short story Netherworld for a sci-fi / fantasy magazine by the end of October at the latest. As you may well know, I've been working on Kalvel for about a year now, but I realize that my first material written won't be my first material published . So this is my first submission in an attempt to become published. I'll write other things at the same time as Kalvel , but once that boulder gets rolling, it will be my primary creative priority, but not my only one.  I have other ideas I wish to explore, some of which you may get to see before, during or after Kalvel is published. I intend that series to be the biggest and best thing I write, but I also want to explore other ideas before and during. As such, I am guessing Vol.1, A Climb of Chaos , will be published as early as 2016 , and as late as 2020 . So my personal deadline I'd like to shoot for is...

I am not a full time writer. I write as a hobby, and an interest of mine. I may blog more often than I write, but I still enjoy and am continuing to  breath e life into my Kalvel series. With the return of Game of Thrones , and possibly The Winds of Winter arriving next year (just my guess, we will have to see) I have become more motivated to write more in one sitting, and more often. So it will be a little less blogging lately, and more effort put into my novel as well as the series it is a part of. I wi ll still stop by and say hello every so often. It may once a week, or once every two weeks…nah, that’s too long. About once a week. Most of the planning for Vol. 1 is pretty much done. I know who the main five viewpoint characters will be, and where Vol. 1 will end, and Vol. 2 will begin. I have a few chapters written, as well as the Interlogue. I have a good idea of what will happen to who in Vol. 3-5, and some ideas on where to end one volu...

As promised, since the Ravens won the SuperBowl, here is just a little bit more about my writing....

One of the challenges I’m faced with writing my book series creating something ‘new’, or having a different approach to the genre I’m contributing to.

As a thank you, I'm going to reveal quite a bit about my novel, from a series of questions I found online and have been using as I write... *because it's still early and I want things to be kept 'under guard', I won't go too  detailed, but here's a look at the worldbuilding.

'tis the season!  For the next two weeks, I'll be off of work. I'm all caught up on my TV shows: the Dexter season finale was this past Sunday. Boardwalk Empire is finished for now. Walking Dead returns in Feb. Game of Thrones comes back in March. Mad Men will be 2013 sometime. I have a couple movies to see (Argo , Les Miserables and Django Unchained ). I'm at the tail end of The Eye of the World (less than 200 pages left to read, will most likely finish on or by Saturday.) So what am I to do over the holidays? When I'm not with family and friends for gatherings, out to movies, or the like, I will be writing. And I don't mean blog posts, I mean immersing myself in, and creating more of, Kalvel.  First up is 'The Gameplan'. Well, I have mentioned before that my series will be five Volumes. With possibly a sixth, if I need it. Well, I'm going to form an outline of what I want to happen in which book, and to who. Example: "I wan...

The Holidays are coming. I'm off work from Dec. 21 - Jan. 7. During that time will be spend reading (I hope to finish reading The Eye of the World  [ The Wheel of Time  Book 1] by 2013), watch a few Christmas movies, and see some family and friends. This Sunday is the season finale of Dexter. Walking Dead  comes back in Feb. Game of Thrones and Mad Men , I'm awaiting their new seasons to begin.  So I'm what am I going to do lots of? I'm going to write up a storm.  Earlier today I began 'fleshing out' a province I created in the world where my series will take place. Late last week I came up with the name, where it will be located, and the climate. Earlier today I came up with some wildlife. Some traditional, some fantasy, and some that could be an alternate universe version of some of the animals we have on our planet...or had *wink*. My 'personal' goal is to have five more chapters written by 2013. As of now, I'd say I'm abo...

I enjoy listening to music. I like to listen to it when I'm on the bus for a long time, through headphones (not 'earbuds', headphones) when I'm in bed not reading, not sleeping and not with "company". This post is about what music I usually have on while I'm writing my book.

I'm bringing something "new" to the table with my book series. What I'm calling the "interlogue". Let me explain.

Up here in the Great North is Thanksgiving weekend. Today is my sister's birthday (Happy Birthday!) The weekend will be a fun and eventful one. - Today: my boss at work had a retirement luncheon, so we headed to a nearby pub to celebrate. This evening and tonight is my sister's Birthday dinner, cake and presents. - Sunday: Thanksgiving dinner at a friends' place with the family. Always good times. Aside from that, I'm hoping to finish the book I'm reading, The Girl Who Played With Fire . I want  to finish by the end of Monday. I'm in no hurry, but that's my goal. Following that book I'll start reading The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet's Nest . Also, I want to do some more writing for my novel, A Climb of Chaos . I want to write a chapter (an 'interlogue' for a future book) work on another, and possibly start another  one; as well as jot down any random ideas that come to mind. Finally, I plan to start outlining my short story that I pl...