The Curse of the Lost Isle,
a romantic medieval fantasy series, was twenty years in the making and
is coming to a close. Of course, I wrote many other novels for various
publishers in multiple genres during that time, since that series did
not find a publisher right away, and required a great amount of
historical research. As I am writing the last novel, Book eight, Angel
of Lusignan, scheduled for release around the holidays, I realize with
nostalgia that it has been a long labor of love. I’m going to miss
living in that world. As
to what comes next, I’m still debating. I like writing in different
genres and I have a habit of mixing them, which creates marketing
nightmares for my publishers. But I like my stories to be original,
different and unique. I write what I would want to read. In the Curse of
the Lost Isle (from BWL), featuring a family of immortal ladies with
Fae gifts, I mixed authentic legends with known history and romance. In
the Chronicles of Kassouk
and in the Borealis series (from Desert Breeze Publishing), I mixed
science fiction with romance, and several of my characters have
paranormal abilities… sometimes created through technology.
I
also wrote a few contemporary romances, but always with a twist, like
reincarnation, a shape shifter, or a thriller element. Whether writing
about the past, the present, or the future, my main constants are
action, adventure, and romance. I also have a predilection for cats, as
they pop up as secondary characters almost everywhere (except in
medieval times, but I do have a major dog character in Damsel of the
Hawk).
I
would also like my next project to be a series. Like a reader, after I
fall in love with a created world, I enjoy spending time in it. But I
may choose to make these series shorter. Maybe three or four books, not
six or eight like in my two latest series. It’s difficult to promote
Book seven or eight to new readers who haven’t read any of the other
books… even if it’s a standalone.
Standalone
is another requisite of mine. I like my series to be readable out of
order, so each book should be a complete story as much as possible. As a
reader, I hate cliffhanger endings and would never do that to my
readers. I had to cut longer books into two parts before, not by choice,
and although I still gave the first book a satisfying ending, I
couldn’t tie up all the loose ends or resolve all the conflicts at the
end, since that happened in the second book. It deeply bothered me. From
the reviews, I know it bothered a few of my readers as well.
Now,
for the time and place: Medieval? Futuristic? Contemporary? Post
apocalyptic? On a space station? On an alien planet? In an alternate
universe? I have used all of these in the past. Is there any other
option? As
for the characters, I have a predilection for strong, kick-butt
heroines. I also really enjoyed writing immortals. I once flirted with
the idea of writing a series featuring angels, and I am still
considering it. They could be fallen angels seeking redemption, or
guardians of the human kind. Or, they could be aliens, alien/human
hybrids, or AI (artificial intelligence), but I already featured a
synthetic being in Black Dragon (Borealis series). So,
my new writing project should definitely be a series with strong
heroines, romance, action, adventure, and cats (you can never have too
many of those). Each novel should be a complete story, and the series
should lend itself to a different hero and heroine for each story. So,
the constant would be the world in which the characters evolve.
In
other words, writing a series revolves around creating a world in which
strong, captivating characters can fight for what is just and good, and
in the process, find their happily ever after. Writing this post helped
me order my thoughts. Starting next year, look for the start of a new
sci-fi romance series involving strong kick-butt heroines and gorgeous
aliens with angel power. Now, back to finishing the Curse of the Lost
Isle medieval series.
Vijaya Schartz
Blasters, Swords, Romance with a Kick
http://www.vijayaschartz.com
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Until September 20, Michelle Levigne's newest Neighborlee, Ohio novel (fantasy, humor, from Uncial PRess) HERO BLUES is available on Story Cartel. If you haven't heard about Story Cartel before, it's a place to get ... taa daa ... FREE books, and a chance to win prizes, just for downloading books to read and review. Sound good to you? 
