The beginning of The Colour of Her Magic starts with hope. Erin, a humble chicken farmer, is ready to take on the impossible and free the Princess of Undersunne from the cruel reign of the High Sorcerer. But nothing is what it seems.
Terry Pratchett’s book The Colour of Magic and my book The Colour of Her Magic have very similar titles… but they’re quite different! Here’s a handy guide to help you out.
If you aren’t sure you need a beta reader, let me give you a cautionary tale… It also has pirates in it, so maybe you want to read this.
I had to fix a fight scene and it has taken me months to figure out just exactly why it wasn’t working.
If you're a writer in Australia and New Zealand, and you want somewhere to be able to celebrate your wins, or read more about writing, or get tips from established authors, or discuss a niggly plot point that's been bothering you, why don't you check out Write Direction? It's a new Facebook group for writers and a blog, and hoping to expand into a network. I've been privileged enough to join in the creation process for this and it's very exciting! You can join the group here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1181883917079739 and check out our blog here: https://www.writedirection.net/
Learning about how to create multiple editions of the same book, and what to do in NZ with ISBN numbers and registration with the National Library.
Undersunne is a kingdom on the brink of crisis: if the Princess is killed, the High Sorcerer will rule and there will be no more hope. But if she is rescued in time? Maybe, just maybe, there will be a way forward.
I cheated. I wrote a whole book, split it into three, and voila! A trilogy was born. When I started The Colour of Her Magic in 2006 I did not intend for it to be a trilogy. Most of my writing takes the form of standalone novels. By the time I got to the third draft my book was over 180,000 words and I panicked. Nobody was going to publish this. Hadn't I read all those articles about how first novels should be less than 120k words? But what I could do was split it. There are plenty of articles...
Why a chicken farmer for my main character? Why not a princess, or a knight, or someone else? Why were they chosen for the quest?
I remember once hearing that the guy who wrote "Captain Corelli's Mandolin" (Louis de Bernières) took ten years to write his book. Ten years! I couldn't imagine it. My drafts took 3 - 6 months to churn out, and I thought each and every one was magic, brilliant, and perfect. They were not to be touched. So I would put them away for a while and concentrate on the next book, the next idea, because I love starting new projects. Turns out, I like ending them too, but my start list is always longer than my finished list. Then, eventually,...