Reminder: War of Nytefall 1-8 is Available for 99 Cents Each! #vampires #fantasy

Cover Art by Alison Hunt

Enjoy War of Nytefall from beginning to end for $8.00!  Just click on the link!

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Xavier Tempest and Nadia Sylvan: Villains of Nytefall

Sweeny Todd

With War of Nytefall: Eulogy bringing the series to a close, I felt like looking back at the top villains.  At least, they were for the overarching plot.  Xavier Tempest and Nadia Sylvan ruled Nyte while waging their war against the Dawn Fangs.  Although, they were also Dawn Fangs.  Things did get a little shaky with their development, so it’s a good thing I decided to do an analysis.

Originally, Xavier and Nadia were going to hate the Dawn Fangs and think of them as abominations.  After being turned, they continued to hate them and search for a cure, but that idea faded away rather quickly.  I realized that they’re were too adaptable and cunning to stay in the old ways.  It would have been clear to them that the Dawn Fangs couldn’t be enslaved or destroyed.  No cure meant they would be the things they hated, but they love themselves too much to commit suicide.  Once the shock of the changes passed, I really couldn’t do more than have Xavier refer to Clyde as an abomination.  Even that faded away after a while.

This made the Vampire Civil War awkward as well because it was no longer about Nytefall fighting to survive.  It hinged entirely on the grudge between Clyde and the rulers of Nyte after they betrayed him.  This might be why the war got derailed by third parties so often and it didn’t cause any trouble.  The characters were still trying to figure out what they were doing in the long term other than hating each other.  Oddest thing is that it still felt natural since they were immortal and time meant little to them.  They’re also suddenly gaining mortal emotions, so it’s a lot to filter through before they know exactly what they are going to do.  Hatred being a strong emotion would overpower Xavier, Nadia, and Clyde too, which kept things going.

I think the biggest challenge with Xavier and Nadia is that they weren’t going to be hands on enemies.  They had agents while they stayed as safe as possible.  Xavier got pulled into action in Rivalry and Nadia was a major player in Ravenous.  Still, they managed to stay in the shadows for a while, which may have hampered their development.  Oh, they did get a lot of stuff to do in Savagery, so they probably had more time to get attention than I realize.  It wasn’t like the others who they gave orders to or the heroes who were always in the action.  That’s why I sat back and considered how I wanted them to be in this book.

Eulogy posed the same problem as before.  Xavier and Nadia couldn’t jump into the spotlight because it wouldn’t work with the ‘evil Clyde’ plot.  So, every scene with them needed to be on target.  Funny thing is that Nadia ended up being more active than Xavier, which is the opposite of how they went in the beginning of the series.  This got me thinking about past stories and wondering if I missed my own foreshadowing.  I mean, this book ends up boosting Nadia up to a higher level of villainy.  I’m rather proud of how this went and where both of them ended up, but she surprised me.  To the point where I have to ask this question:

Was Nadia the real leader the whole time?

Personally, I don’t know.  I think it was Xavier at the beginning and they shared the planning for most of it.  Yet, things kind of changed and it felt like Xavier was getting worn down or soft at some point.  I had him be easily set off and kind of sniveling whenever he was overstressed, but he never struck me as stupid or controlled.  So, this is a mystery that even I can’t entirely solve beyond what happens in the finale.

I’m happy where the Lord and Lady of Nyte landed at the end.  They weren’t the powerhouses and global threats like Baron Kernaghan in Legends of Windemere.  They were definitely a more personal issue for the Dawn Fangs and I like that I managed to keep it at that scale.  There was a battle for global power and influence, but the war did always have a sense of being around that grudge.  It wouldn’t have worked if I had Xavier and Nadia expand their desires to anything bigger than ruling over the vampire kingdoms and killing Clyde.

Funny little fact: I think Xavier and Nadia are the only loving couple that I’ve written so far.  Everything else has been love triangles, awkward courting, or barely touched on.  Timoran and Tigris Wrath might be the next closest thing.  Not sure what that says about me when my strongest, most loving couple are villains.

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Teaser Tuesday: Aftermath at the Scrumptious Siren

Cover Art by Alison Hunt

Welcome to another War of Nytefall: Eulogy excerpt.  The opening of the story really required that I establish the mood of the world.  Previous events have caused issues for the Dawn Fangs and here we get an idea of how things are going.  Enjoy.

Continue reading

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C.S. Boyack’s #bookrelease: WRECK OF THE LANTERNFISH #adventure #pirates

Ciao, amici! I’ve got a real treat for you today. If you’re a speculative fiction fan, you’ve surely come across the work of this wildly inventive …

C.S. Boyack’s #bookrelease: WRECK OF THE LANTERNFISH #adventure #pirates
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Will Clyde’s Dream Become a Reality or a Disaster?

Alucard from Hellsing

With War of Nytefall: Eulogy out, I know this topic has to be touched on.  After all, it’s make or break time for Clyde’s dream.  I’ve discussed it at length several times, so where else can I go with it?

Public opinion! (Sort of)

One thing I’ve wondered is if real people would see this as feasible.  Would you be okay with vampires living openly in your neighborhood?  This is with the knowledge that they drink blood, have incredible power, and their ancestors were the traditional monsters.  I know we’d like to think we’d be open to the idea, but would we really?  I know I’d be nervous at first.  Though, I’m a tough one to bring into the conversation since this is my creation.  So, I’d like to know how other people would handle the revelation that vampires exist and may be living peacefully next door.

For a refresher:  Clyde’s dream is that the Dawn Fangs live openly and in peace with the mortals.  Since Dawn Fangs can eat real food and control their bloodlust, they are less likely to go berserk.  Keep in mind that I said less likely instead of will never.  You’re going to have some bad apples and vampires can be triggered just like mortals.  Still, he hopes that mortals will accept his people as part of their society and world instead of seeing them as terrifying monsters.  To do so, he’s already had hundreds, if not thousands, of Dawn Fangs live among mortals in secret.  Of course, it’s going to be a shock when you learn who has had fangs all this time, which can be a problem.  Yet, it proves they can live in harmony, right?

So, what do you think?  How would you react to Clyde’s dream becoming a reality?

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What To Do About Thursdays?

Not really sure what else to talk about here.  Mostly because this is really stuck in my mind as I get close to the end of the year.  I like having a post go up every day because I don’t do anything else as far as social media goes.  Keep falling behind on Twitter to the point where I don’t know why I’m there.  My life isn’t visual enough for Instagram and I think Facebook has me in limbo.  Seriously, I can make a post on Facebook and get absolutely nothing.  Only reason I’m still there is because a few friends are only able to be contacted through that site.  None of that is what this post is really about.

‘Immortal Wars’ ends in December and that means I have nothing going on for Thursdays.  I’ll be using it for War of Nytefall: Eulogy and full series promos throughout the rest of the year though.  I just need to figure out something else to do with that day.  I’m open to suggestions as usual aside from people telling me that I don’t have to post anything.

One idea that I just stumbled onto:

Apparently, I have a folder with 263 poems.  I think this is from long ago when I was posting a poem a day on Tumblr to see if I could make it a year.  I had this along with some older works to make it through.  Doesn’t look like I ever put them on the blog, so I could make Thursday a poetry day.  Simple and fun. That would last me over 5 years too, which takes some pressure off.  Nice to have a day where I know it’s already planned out.

Beyond that I’ve got no other ideas.

Also:

Grab a copy of ‘War of Nytefall: Eulogy’ for 99 cents!  Get the whole series for $8!

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Goal Post: Jury is Still Out on My Survival

I got the booster shot last Saturday morning, which set the stage for a rough week.  I was fine for that day, but the rest turned into this:

  • Sunday- Achy around joints and exhausted.
  • Monday- Slightly fatigued and swollen lymph nodes on side where got shot.
  • Tuesday- More energy, but still pain on side.
  • Wednesday- Pain gone and energy reviving.  Stress and little water set off IBS.
  • Thursday-  Friggin’ IBS making my lower intestines squirm.
  • Friday-  Lower back got in on the act.  Held it together long enough to finish the day, but muscles spent the night spasming.

Needless to say, I didn’t get a lot done since it was all about work, parenting, and physical recovery.  I couldn’t get my brain to focus on anything else beyond a few future blog posts and checking sales.  By the end of the day, I was too drained to do more than watch more of ‘Burn Notice’ and fiddle with a ‘Witcher’ puzzle.  So, I don’t have much more to say about my week.  Nothing was accomplished.

Speaking of failing to made an impact, War of Nytefall: Eulogy has sold a total of 2 copies.  It debuted last weekend and didn’t give the series a boost either.  Frustrating part is that I’ve had around 10 people tell me that they’ve picked up copies.  I’ve seen plenty of friends on social media share the promos too.  Just isn’t getting me anywhere, which is why I’m routinely trying to figure out what I’m doing here.  Doesn’t help that I get promos of others shoved in my face.  I’m talking the ones where the author was able to drop thousands of dollars into the campaign and has an army of loyal readers/reviewers at their disposal.  Feels like salt on the wound.  It shouldn’t, but I think sensing that me promoting my book caused the algorithms to send the others my way made me hate the system even more.

Another thing that gets triggered are people trying to get me to give them for money to promote my book.  I’m talking the groups/reviewers who DM you or comment on unrelated posts to get you to say yes.  To be honest, I tried one when I released Anarchy and it had absolutely no effect on sales.  With money even more restrained now, I can’t be bothered to do a test run.  At this point, I don’t feel like any money I put towards promoting will get me anything other than stress.  My books simply don’t sell.  At least the new stuff while my original series still flickers to life throughout the money.  Makes me worry for Darwin and everyone who comes after him.

Really all I’ve got to say this week.  It’s a long, busy slog to the break and I need to get my body back into some form of functionality.  Was even hard to walk by the end of things, so this weekend is for resting.  Promised my son a bunch of fun events between bouts of homework.  Though we both want to rest up for next week since this last one wore us down a bunch.  Weather is warm for December, which is frustrating because we can’t use the cold as an excuse to be lazy.  Now, it’s just that we don’t want to do anything more than play around the house.  Some weekends need to be lazy.

Goals of the week:

  1. Make it to the next weekend.
  2. Maybe buy some books.
  3. Parenting and work as usual.
  4. Finish ‘Burn Notice’
  5. February blog posts
  6. Tinker with notebook
  7. Sleep in this weekend
  8. Oil change
  9. Make a better list next weekend
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Magrus the Purifier

Mark Hamill in Knightfall

Another new character showing up in War of Nytefall: Eulogy is Magrus the Purifier, who is hard to explain.  Well, not that hard, but I don’t really know where to go with him since he’s fairly simple.  Not a bad thing there . . . Let me try again.

Magrus was always meant to show up in the finale of Clyde’s story.  I had him down as a powerful hunter who would push the Dawn Fangs to their limits.  He’d kill a bunch off too since he was going to be Van Helsing or a version of him at first.  This plan kept getting pushed aside because I never got a good idea of how the ending would work.  So, Magrus remained a name on a page with maybe a sentence to remind me who he was when I got around to him.  Then, the vampires jumped to Windemere and the poor guy got even more lost in the shuffle.

Every time I came up with a version of Magrus, I accidentally used it for someone else in an earlier book.  He was a priest with a weapon designed to kill Clyde?  Given to Leo Kandrel in Eradication.  A destructive monster who would be the biggest threat to the Dawn Fangs?  Alastyre in Savagery.  A paladin leading an army to defeat the vampire threat?  Lord Adam of Greco in Anarchy.  Poor guy couldn’t catch a break even when I thought he was in the clear.  So, I ended up shelving him for most of the series in terms of planning and focused on the other new characters.  This way, I would have a niche for him to fit into by the time I reached this point.

Magrus the Purifier finally stepped onto the page as a retired paladin of Zaria the Purity Goddess.  He was a mortal feared by vampires because he could always discern their kind from others.  This is because he lost his eyes and had them replaced with spells that can be shifted into various vision enchantments.  I made him rather vain too because he’s an old man wearing robes padded to make him appear muscular.  Although, he is still smart and tough enough to be a threat.  I think because I never got a sense that this version was worth putting into a fight.  He simply didn’t have that demeanor and I went for really old and worn in terms of his physical fitness.  The man has been fighting vampires for decades, so the mileage is going to show.

Instead, I made him a special investigator for the Zarian temple.  With a fake Clyde running around causing mayhem, he’s been pulled into action to see what’s going on and where the truth lies.  I liked this version because he’s still a threat depending on the information he unearths.  I no longer had this marching, battle hungry holy warrior determined to kill Clyde.  There were already enough of those types of enemies in previous books.  Now, I had someone who would help reveal the truth of the final battle.  At least that’s what I hoped.

Magrus worked better as a symbol of the holy side of Windemere being ready to give Dawn Fangs the benefit of the doubt.  I was surprised that he came out neutral and refused to believe what was presented to him.  He required so many layers of evidence that he wouldn’t be budged by lies or even simple explanations.  It made him more difficult to work into scenes because he became focused entirely on this issue.  He didn’t care about the peace talks, the Vampire War, or anything else going on.  Not to the extent that I could put him into those scenes, which meant he became fairly limited.  On the plus side, this also meant I didn’t overextend the character into oblivion.

I’m still happy with how Magrus turned out even though it’s nothing like I expected him to be.  Would I have liked to do more with him?  Yes, but I can’t do anything about that.  I tried more and that muddied the waters.  He served his purpose and definitely stands out as a unique character, which is a challenge in a final book.  You always want the 11th hour cast members to be memorable and I think he will be.

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The Three Acts: Act 3

Hi again, gang. Craig with you once more to continue my series on Three Act Structure. If you’re coming in here, the previous posts were Act 1, Act 2…

The Three Acts: Act 3
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Immortal Wars: Light, Blood, & Tears Part 40 (Finale)

I want to simply say thank you to whoever decided to follow along with the two ‘Immortal Wars’ books I’ve been posting for a few years.  They were my first attempts at writing a novel, a fantasy, an action story, and a series.  I had no idea what I was doing and my confidence got blown to bits several times when I was creating these stories.  This is probably another reason why they failed because I had very little faith in myself back in high school.  So, it’s nice to see these get some attention.  Now, I don’t have these books sitting on my laptop and acting like a private shame.  So, thank you.

(Disclaimer: A warning to those who continue.  This is a sequel to a previous story.  Both of these were written in the mid-1990’s.  While the first one was slightly edited and vanity press published, this one has not been touched in over 20 years.  I figure I should do something with it and people may get a laugh or fright from how I used to be.  Every author comes from somewhere, so this is part of my origin.  To that end, I am deeply sorry for whatever nightmares I will inflict on the literary world and the American English language.  Enjoy?)

PREVIOUS ENTRY CLICK HERE

Eighteen minutes after Cybro and Adriana get back to the Black Tower, most of the uninjured immortals meet to discuss the lose of two of their own.  Kilanus and Hellax are absent because they were ordered to help fix and refit Cybro.  Meanwhile, Adriana has to try and talk to the other villains, who are attempting to stay calm.  After about ten seconds of holding back, one of them looses control.

“We will ignore Tegam for now.  But I want to hear your explanation of Draveon’s death.  Why were you said to be involved with the guardian?” growls Psylon, who has a tight grip around the seductress’ neck.  Adriana is weakly struggling to break away while Startrix and Mindtrigger are trying to get through a three-foot thick barrier of fire.

“This choking move is really getting old, firefly.  Of course, the fire barrier is a nice touch.  But I don’t know what you’re talking about.  Let me go,” gasps the blonde while she savagely digs her sharp nails into Psylon’s dark skin.  The maniac fails to notice her own fire-like blood trickling to the floor.  She also doesn’t notice a swift shadow leap through the fire until it tackles her.

“It’s a good thing I don’t like obeying any orders from Adriana.  Now, put my mother down or you die.  You know that I will gladly slaughter you like the fat, ugly pig you resemble,” threatens a slightly burnt Kilanus.  The fire barrier dies down while the three female immortals get to their feet.  Psylon walks over to a nearby hoverchair, so she can set it on fire.

“Let us try to rationally discuss this.  Obviously, Adriana has not heard or read any of Earth’s recent news reports.  But first, I suggest that Psylon goes back to her room and rests.  Take her there and make sure that she stays inside until I arrive, Kilanus.  Use any means necessary to restrain her,” orders Mindtrigger from a few feet above the others.

“I have a husband to mourn, so I’ll leave.  But you owe me blood vengeance for Draveon’s death, Adriana.  Now either you send me after the guardians or I take it out of your bouncing carcass.  And I want it soon.”  Psylon storms out of the room and Kilanus silently disappears into the shadows to follow the redheaded lunatic.

“Well, she seems to be taking this entire death of her husband thing pretty nicely.  I’m surprised you haven’t tried to kill me, scientist.  Why?” says Adriana as she sits on the edge of the table.  Mindtrigger lands on the ground and suddenly punches the blond immortal directly in her nose.

“I am angry.  But Startrix has told me what my created son was planning.  He may have been physically stronger than you and he may have had better powers, but I knew that he wouldn’t win.  He would not back down either.  You always seem to find ways out of trouble.  Getting Fate to help you and using Cybro’s only hologram projector was a plan worthy of my genius.  Draveon was a beloved part of my life and I will miss him.  But he made the wrong enemy.”

“Thanks, Mindtrigger.  But rot in hell for this broken nose.”

“Excuse me.  I have a very important question.  Why did Draveon’s body disintegrate instead of teleporting back to the Black Tower?  That was what your potion was supposed to do,” mentions Startrix.

“Well the potion was an experiment, after all.  I mean, how was I supposed to know exactly what would happen?  But I did promise that the guardians would not be able to get their hands on his body.  I think I might have put a little too much cyanide into the drink.  Or else it was bad sulfur.  Now, why is everyone talking about some news reports?” Adriana inquires while her nose heals.  A morning edition newspaper is handed to her and the tired villain’s eyes go wide.  On the front page is a picture of Fate and Adriana fighting Draveon in the museum.  Above the detailed, color photo is the big, bold words ‘Immortal Heroes’.

“Do you need an explanation?  Or, have you just realized the problem?” whispers the frail scientist while the ebony-armored woman goes off to a corner.  She is shaking her head and apparently laughing in her eerie voice.

“I see what you mean.  Whoever took this picture is a terrible photographer.  They shot my bad side, which I didn’t even know existed.  Of course, they get points for having guts and staying near the battle.”

“If you had bothered to read the first ten sentences, you would have realized that you’re being considered a hero.  All of the planet guardians were mentioned, including an explanation and, surprisingly, a Presidential pardon for Hydrana’s actions.  Her father is being put into a hospital for treatment and then a minimum-security prison.  Seems her old man was a child-abuser and his entire household is speaking up against him.  Some reporters even managed to get an interview with Fate, who admitted that you had helped with stopping Draveon and Cybro.  Tegam was left out entirely.”

Adriana hands the paper back to Mindtrigger and starts rubbing her eyes.  “What do they exactly have written down there about me?  I can’t possibly be considered a true hero.”

“You couldn’t do that if you tried.  It states that the woman named Adriana can be considered an even mixture of good and evil.  People are aware that your ultimate goal is to rule this universe, but Fate has said that there’s more to you than that.  Because of your important role in stopping Draveon, you are being called an occasional hero.  It really makes no sense at all.”

“I see.  Well, this is far from a bad thing.  Being thought of as a hero allows me a more public freedom than the rest of you.”

Mindtrigger’s eyebrows rise before he asks, “I’m a little confused for once.  More public freedom to do what?”

“I can walk around Earth’s cities without having to fight through the police and those annoying armies.  Just dream about it, my friends.  I can eat at those expensive restaurants and go to amusement parks any time I want.  And shopping won’t have to be over the phone and through galactic smugglers anymore.  The two of you and Kilanus can probably come with me.  Well, maybe not the two of you,” Adriana replies in a dreamy tone.  She lies down on the cool, metal table and stretches her weary body like a cat.

“Out of sheer curiosity, where do you get the money for these shopping outings and hiring smugglers?  We are stationed on Pluto while you have somehow managed to amass a fortune in both Earthling currencies and Glebnokian stones,” interrupts Startrix, who is holding a goblet of bubbling, yellow liquid that smells like urine.

“There are several ways to collect unlimited funds from another planet.  I play the stock market game, which you usually help me with by using your powers.  Other ways are stealing money from both multi-billionaires and occasionally straight from the U.S. mint.  With my current funds, I could have bought a lot more clothing than I. . .did. . .on. . .Earth. . . That son of a bitch!”

“What is wrong, Adriana?”

“Well, time witch.  I had bought a few hundred new items for my out of style wardrobe, which I put on the space shuttle.  Of course, Tegam took that particular space shuttle with him to Neptune.  Damn it.  Go fix our robot, Mindtrigger, and just let me worry about the redheaded traitor.”

“Okay.  By the way, seducer.  Nice haircut.  But you looked much better with long hair,” mentions the frail immortal before leaving the room.  Adriana slumps down into her gothic throne while Startrix sits in a distant hoverchair.

“This escapade of yours was pretty unsuccessful.  We have lost two of our own, one of which gave us an irreplaceable edge against the guardians, and you accomplished none of your goals.  Now, the planet guardians have the primal ring along with the sword of light and the Solstar medallion.  How do you explain the point of this particular failure, Adriana?”

“Shut the hell up, time bitch.  I’m severely not in the mood for your dry-leaf voice.  I’ve been beaten, shot, choked, bitten, electrocuted, frozen, knocked out, and skewered all in the past week and it has not been any fun.  Except for when I was bitten.  But enough about my old problems.  Let me tell you about my perfect, yet terribly, misguided son,” explains Adriana with a pleasant, warm smile.

The only reply from Startrix is a confused, wordless noise as the connection between the leader of the planet guardians and their greatest enemy is explained.  But like Adriana told Fate, she isn’t ready to tell the entire tale just yet.

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