Beheading, Neck Snapping and Mayhem: 101

Do you have what it takes? Learn the art of beheading, neck snapping, etc. in three quick courses:

Class One:

Don't kill the wrong person. The following is an example of waiting until you know you've found a suitable person to murder.

Not that I actually practice these things. Not in real life. You got that, right?

Seriously, this is a brief scene I'll post over the next few days. Hopefully it's a nice, violent Christmas offering. Hmm. Maybe I should have done this for Halloween?

"The plan’s working, Haga," Aiyu called, slowing. Haga was speechless as Aiyu passed. Then the boy smelled blood. He stopped and looked at his friend. They had played sixes on their journey west, but Haga was a huge, childlike man, near-sighted and a poor lookout, so he always drew guard duty. Since Aiyu's age made him everyone's messenger boy, he had developed sympathy for the simple-minded giant.
"Haga, do you want a rematch when we get to the caves?"
Haga stared at the ground. Aiyu knelt and touched Haga’s chest.
Haga slumped to the ground, dead. Why would anyone in Xien Ye kill Haga? It couldn’t be an enemy from outside the city or Xien Ye would already be overrun.
Behind Haga's body the thick board used to bar the door fell, too. Aiyu glanced at the shut, but unbarred postern door. His answer exploded like a firecracker in his mind. A traitor from within the city was inside the passageway, breaching Xien Ye’s defense to allow the enemy inside.
"Alarm!" Aiyu clapped his hand over his mouth. Had Haga’s murderer heard him shout?
Aiyu rushed into the tunnel's darkness, then stopped. His gasps filled the air around him like the rush of wings. The enemy would hear him. He slowed his breath and let his vision adjust to the light provided by the open door behind him. In tiny, silent rat steps, he ran.
Aiyu’s fingers twitched for a weapon. His dagger was a short eating utensil and his sword was no friend in this confined space. He pulled the knife. His arms brushed the cold walls on either side. Here at the base, the city’s wall was as wide as four oxen carts laid side-by-side. The light dimmed until his hand before him was only visible if he moved it. He slowed to a walk, then stopped.
A dim light glowed ahead, flickered and all but disappeared. He strained to hear if he had been discovered. No. The candlelight returned. He saw the partially hidden silhouette of a man and heard him struggling with rusted locks.
At last, Aiyu had found his quarry.

White as Bone, Red as Blood - The Fox Sorceress

I want to thank Mirella Patzer for allowing me to re-post this on my website. Please see The Historical Novel Review's site for an interview with the author and an excerpt from the book.

White as Bone Red as Blood – The Fox Sorceress is much more than a vivid portrayal about a turbulent period in Japanese history. It is a gentle coming of age story, one that explores sexuality in all its forms, and the passions of relationships of all kinds. The author, Cerridwen Fallingstar, has weaved an intricate tale of treachery and love that is so realistic, it feels as if the reader is actually a living witness to the tale.

What I found most intriguing, is the fact that the author drew on her own experiences as a shaman and time-traveled to this past life where the story of Seiko was unfolded to her. Because of this first-hand view, coupled with intense research, the author was able to write the story with amazing clarity and a level of detail that held me enthralled from beginning to end. It is historical fiction at its very best, depicting a time and era in history rich with conflict and emotion.

A sequel named White as Bone Red as Blood – The Storm God is scheduled for release in the spring of 2010 and is one I am eagerly awaiting.

Book Review: "I Rode a Horse of Milk White Jade"

I RODE A HORSE OF MILK WHITE JADE
by Diane Wilson
The book opens with the main character as an elderly woman telling her tale to her granddaughter. So while there is never any question as to the main character's survival, this YA book nonetheless captured my imagination and I am not someone who routinely reads YA. Ms. Wilson's fantasy is fluid, descriptive and unobtrusive. You'll never realize she holds the reins.
If you rate by the tears-o-meter, it is by far the best book I've read in months.

When Oyuna of the Kerait tribe is mamed – her foot crushed – by a black mare, she is marked forever. Her parents try every treatment imaginable, but there is no cure for her foot, her life or her luck. Still, Oyuna knows she is meant for more than stirring mare's milk into ayrag. She dreams of speed and freedom, but needs a fast horse to win the next great race and make her dream come true.

Yet when her father allows her to pick a horse, her choice is Bayan, a mare well past her prime. But Oyuna cannot turn away when she hears the horse's plea for help. Reluctantly, Oyuna rescues Bayan and their friendship changes Oyuna's life.

The soldiers of Kublai Khan take riders, food and horses from Oyuna's tribe, including Bayan. Rather than lose her mare, Oyuna masquerades as her stepbrother and leaves with Bayan and the soldiers. Oyuna is discovered and she and Bayan are dismissed from military service. They now serve as a currier to the great Khan. This is good news to Oyuna, who knows the Khan has a herd of ten thousand white mares. If she and Bayan deliver his precious message in time, perhaps he will give her a fast horse.

She and Bayan brave many dangers crossing the Gobi, but at last reach Kublai Khan's court. Received well, Oyuna develops a friendship with the Khan, but he wants Bayan for his own. Rather than leave her friend or trade her for the mount she wants, Oyuna stays in her ruler's service. Then tragedy strikes the Khan's herds including Bayan. Only Oyuna can save her beloved mare, but time is faster than any horse.

You must read "I Rode a Horse of Milk White Jade" to discover the ending. Nothing will induce me to tell, but be prepared when you read this book. Pack a lunch so you won't have to get up and have tissues close by. You'll need them.

Interview Me: Ask Five Questions

I think this is a great way to get to know folks online and I want to thank Sandy Shin for suggesting it.

Leave a comment saying "Interview me," and I'll respond by asking you five questions. Post your answers to the questions and the questions themselves in your blog/journal, with the offer to interview someone else in the same post.

1. How did you come to be interested in writing stories with Asian settings?
When I graduated from college, (we won't go into how long ago that was)I missed my previous reading schedule and thought I'd like to read something unusual about someone or in a setting I'd never done. My first read was both: the biography of Mahatma Ghandi, from which I got a great idea for a Deep Space Nine three part episode. Alas, the show ended before I had a chance to pitch it. After the biography, I decided to read more stuff set in Asia as none of it was ever broached as a topic at school. I had one prof with a love for "other" settings and he suggested - God Bless him, he LOANED ME HIS COPY - of "Romance of the Three Kingdoms. He has long since had his copy returned and I currently own abridged and unabridged copies, one comic book episode and the soap opera version of the story. I hope to get the full Asian version of "Red Cliffs" someday.
After all of the research I've done for "Mourn Their Courage," I can't see leaving my world behind. I want to stay put for awhile yet. I've got ideas for one or two more stories and from there, I might well continue to India or the Middle East. We'll see.

2. Who's your favorite character, from any book/movie/etc.? What makes him or her your favorite character?
My favorite character(s) of all time, as a group, are in Guy Gavriel Kay's "Tigana." The book might have some flaws, but the characters stay with me. After so many readings I've had to replace my copy of the paperback more than once, I still return to their lives and wonder what they're doing now. They're intelligent, courageous individuals with deep passions. I find all of this attractive. My favorite among the lot is Alessan and I think he's my favorite because he's also the idyllic leader: someone I could look up to and respect.

3. What is one book you never get tired of rereading? Oooh, this one's tough. Up through my last re-read of "Tigana," that would have been it. However, the last time I read it, I edited it. There are things I loved initially and I now feel are over used or don't work. I think as writers, we don't have the luxury of indulging in re-reading a "perfect" book because we're always improving. If we're not, we're either not writing well anymore or we're dead. There ARE books I still enjoy re-reading and "Tigana" is among them. Mercedes Lackey's "Last Herald Mage of Valdemar" trilogy is something I still enjoy for the passion and heart of the characters. I enjoy re-reading the Harry Potter series, and Pride and Prejudice, but I edit all of these as I go. I can't help it. Don't think me a religious nut or a holier-than-thou sort of Christian, but I DO enjoy re-reading my Bible. There are always new things I find even though I've read it front to back. Maybe that's because I continue to grow and it's the only book I've read that always stretches my horizons. Fortunately, I rarely try to edit it.

4. If there's one place in the world you could live in, where would that be? So many places, so little time. I could live anywhere I could set a story. Seriously. I'd love to return to England someday, I'd love to live in Tuscany and I dearly hope to return to China. I'm positive I will return to Japan. But do I want to live in any of these places indefinately? No. Home is with my family in plain old midwest U.S.A. I'm reminded of something my husband once commented on in my writing. When I asked him what overall theme he saw in my best works, he said, "A yearning for a place that doesn't exist." That's where I want to live, folks. Come visit me sometime.

5. What's one thing about you that people don't usually know? It does, of course, depend on how you know me. If you met me in college, you know I enjoy singing and are probably unaware I write better than I sing. (At least I do now.) If you know me through my day job, you know nothing whatsoever about me except that I'm a private individual. I suppose you might be aware that I have a daughter and work out of my home so I can also be a stay-at-home mom. Lots of people probably don't know I've got some skill as an artist. I can sketch an Arabian, Mustang, Quarterhorse, Thoroughbred, Morgan or (with references) draft horses in very little time. I can also do pencils of people, but not from memory and I don't work well from imagination as far as people are concerned.

Thanks for taking the time to do this, Sandy! It was a fun exercise and really did make me think. If anyone out there would like to take a stab at their own interview, leave me a comment with the words "Interview Me."

What Do You Do When You Hit An Impasse?

I've just got word from someone I think probably has several good points in her review of my first 50 pages. Alas, one of her comments touches on both how my original source material occured, but also how people historically acted in the culture I've chosen. While I certainly hope to have a following in China, I must also write for Western readers who may or may not understand why I've done these things. I'm stuck. I can't go forward without slamming into reverse.

What do you do in these situations?

Metaphysical Rationales: Why Do You Blog?

A friend at Agentquery.net started me thinking this morning. She asked about timing on starting a blog, and about how to gain a following.
It is without doubt a long, tedious process to gain a following online. That's why you have to start long before you are ready to send your novel to an agent. So how do you find these folks?
1. Choose a point for your blog. Mine is to promote Asian-themed literature. Do I get off point? Sure. More often than I'm on. However, if there's ever someone who needs my sort of site to post something on or raise a question, I am so there!
You may have noticed I've reviewed a few Asian Themed books: "Silver Phoenix," "The Wandering Monk" and "A Robe of Feathers." I intend to continue with this, as I think it serves the general community of writes/readers and fits well with my theme. Early next year, I look forward to posting my first author interview and hope (and pray) to do more.
I've also started a Yahoo group for Authors of Asian Novels and promoted it on this blog. I started the group so that we could build a database of research materials, novels to read, music to enjoy while writing and anything else we can think of. It can also serve as a critique group, though no one has asked thus far. I wish I'd had access to that database and support while writing "Mourn Their Courage." I hope to share and add to these resources as I continue in my career.
2. Build a following by becoming a follower. Post notes on other blogger's sites, be kind and thoughtful and make sure your blog allows followers and gives your email. You will find followers doing this. Also, contact individuals when surfing. Most of my followers have come by to say hello because I said it first. BTW, I'm a zero on the introversion/extroversion scale. What excuse do you have?
3. Google news topics of interest to you, then contact those individuals whose names pop up. I've found more than a few followers and people to follow by doing that.
4. Offer information on contests and heck; even offer prizes for your own contest if you have an idea for one! Nothing sparks interest more than competition and generosity. (A lesson I've learned, but not incorporated, I know!)

I'm sure there are other methods I haven't tried/thought of, so feel free to suggest them. I'd love to know what I'm doing wrong! LOL.

Back to why you want to start now:
By the time you've blogged for a year, you may feel like there's little point. You have twenty to fifty followers. Big whoop, right? Don't get discourage if you follow more than you're followed. I think that's the norm. I know there are followers of mine who never selected "Follow This Blog." They follow by RSS feed, which I have no idea how to track. (Anyone?)You have more of a following than you know even with ten people signed up.

When an agent googles you or selects the url address that you DID include in your cover letter, they'll see what you've got and be impressed, which is the whole point. Right?

Here comes the reason for my title. This morning, I got to the above question and stumbled. It made me think about this process.
Some folks blog everyday, write their novels and probably work as clowns for kids or bake for a local charity. I respect these individuals more than I can say. I blog when I have an idea and time to express it. My fiction comes first. Yet I still find myself wondering: why BLOG. I have a bazillion and one writer friends through online forums and my critique groups. I have their support and they have mine. So the obvious answer is, I'm marketing for my upcoming novel. That's also too simple an answer and I would not continue if that were my sole response to this question. I'm going to take a leap here and paraphrase a favorite quote from "Shadowlands." "We read (write/blog) to know we're not alone." That is why I continue to blog. Though Facebook says I have close to 200 friends and I have many others who don't know what a computer keyboard looks like, let alone how to Facebook or blog-surf, I still want MORE.

Am I alone in that?

Why do you blog?

Kreative Blogger Award

Thanks to TK Richardson for nominating me for the Kreative Blogger Award! She's got a great book trailer at her site plus straightforward directions on how to make your own and that's just the recent entry. Get over there and check her out.
I'm supposed to tell you all sorts of things about me that you don't already know. The truth is, there's at least one person following me who knows everything there is to know (are you reading today, Rabbit?), but for everyone else:
1. TK Richardson wanted to be a gypsy; I wanted to be a horse! LOL.
2. I'm a Star Trek fan and wrote "A Tribble Ate My Lunch: The Official Star Trek Cookbook." The only problem being, I was too slow and someone beat me to the punch. (No pun intended.) I will try Paramount/Pocket again someday.
3. I listen to music of every variety but rap with foul words and twangy country.
4. I have sung in Carnegie Hall with a choir of about eighty members.
5. Wo hui shuo Putonghwa. Ni na? (Okay, I'm showing off, there. I said I can speak Mandarin, you?)
6. I'm a romantic who loves the occasional romance novel as much as blood and guts battle scenes.
7. I love historicals, but refuse to consider reading anything set before 1900 unless it's Urban Fantasy. I just can't get into modern settings.

Ok. Next, I'm supposed to send my award onto others. (They make you work for this thing, don't they?)

1. Take a look at Jeannie Lin's Adventures in Romance. It's a gorgeous site and if you're into Asian stuff like me, she has good news for you.
2. Dara Sorenson at Tales From the Writing Front. Dara has an intrigueing site that's concerned mostly with Japanese-flavored Fantasy. How cool is that?
3. Sandi Rog at The Book Doctor. Sandi is a good friend, a Christian and a great editor with some classy visitors. She also gives free public edits, so check her out.
4. The Ruby-Slippered Sisterhood blog. If you're not following, why on earth not?
5. Laura Manivong's site has a great post up right now about high concept hooks. I am so there when I'm done with this. You should join me. Her upcoming novel, "Escaping the Tiger" received a great review from Linda Sue Park. I may be unworthy to link to Laura's site....
6. Natalie Whipple is Between Fact and Fiction and yes, I intended to word the sentence like that. LOL. Natalie's a hoot. It's a great, informative blog and Nathan Brandsford keeps touting her in his daily blog for a reason. Check her out.
7. The Historical Novel Review is run by Mirella Patzer and is a font of info on great reads and author interviews.