Beyond the Comfort Zone

On 05/06/202105/06/2021 By TomIn Achievement, Apocalyptic, author ideas, collections, General, Insight, Novel, post-apocalyptic, Promotion, sci-fi, self-publishing, series, thriller, trilogy2 Comments

***** Sylvia: Beyond the Apocalypse is now available *****

As many writers do, I push myself in my craft. There’s little point in creating characters who are compelled to operate outside of their comfort zone if the author is taking the soft option.

I profess to be a multi-genre, multi-discipline author. In other words, I write stories across a wide variety of topics and I work on novels, novellas, short stories, and poetry.

For this reason, I dipped my toe in the waters of the post-apocalyptic genre, uncertain if it would result in the completion of a story. As things turned out, Light at The End: Surviving the Apocalypse became the first tale in a trilogy. I’m pleased to report that the three books are among my most popular titles.

Sylvia: Beyond the Apocalypse, is a spin-off from Light at The End – The Trilogy. Like most spinoffs, Sylvia’s backstory relies heavily on the trilogy that spawned the idea, and will appeal to anyone who has read the original tales. Unsurprisingly, the main character of this book is Sylvia, however I’ve used the story as a vehicle to elaborate on the world inhabited by the characters who peopled the original trilogy. Time (and reviews), will tell if I’ve done the job well.

Codename: Nightshade was the first spinoff story from the Beyond the Law trilogy, and apart from featuring Nightshade, the tale introduced Foxglove, a new heroine.

Codename: Foxglove is now my priority Work in Progress, and yes, it’s another crime thriller. Foxglove provides continuity and will see the end of the BTL series. I enjoy the creation of a trilogy but if there is a downside it is that the author becomes a hostage to the story.

My other main project this year is Crusader, which will be developed as a standalone crime thriller. The main work with Jason, his friends, and foes, will be later in the year but it’s always good to create characters as they come to mind, placing them in scenarios to see what happens.

For those of you who like an insight, the first chapter of each of my WIP is available at:

https://tombensoncreative.com/work-in-progress/

As always, comments are welcome.

Tom

Who is Sylvia?

On 11/02/202111/02/2021 By TomIn Achievement, Apocalyptic, author ideas, collections, General, Insight, Novel, paperback, post-apocalyptic, Promotion, sci-fi, series, thriller, trilogy

Sylvia is the character who is occupying much of my time recently. When I wrote Light at The End, it was intended as a standalone, but although it was a fulfilling story to write, there was more to say, and so it became the first of a trilogy.

In much the same way, I ended the third book in the LaTE trilogy feeling that the job was done, and then while working on something completely different I was nagged by the thought that Sylvia’s story ought to be told. She made several appearances in Dark to Light (LaTE – Book 3), but it was more of a cameo role. By implication, Sylvia continued beyond the main story, and so I feel justified in giving her a starring role.

I’ve shelved my other two new novels while I devote many of my daylight hours to Sylvia. To tell one person’s story might be fun for the author, but it’s the reader’s satisfaction which ought to be the author’s primary aim. With this in mind, I’ve created a well-rounded back-story for my leading lady and, of course, there will be interaction with old and new characters in the wider arena of the post-apocalyptic world in which she lives.

Other projects will be tackled whenever I leave Sylvia aside for a regular ‘rest’.

The frontrunner in other work, and my next anthology, is Next Steps: and other stories . I now have my seven stories written to first draft stage, and next week I’ll revisit them to see where any early improvements might be made. I’ll leave them aside again until March and revisit before they go to beta readers.

In March, I’ll give a heads-up to those authors who suggested the ‘dialogue prompts’ which I used for my seven stories. This will hopefully provide the impetus for my guests to check out the submissions they are offering for the new collection. Publishing date at present might be as early as April or May.

What else have I been up to since this new year got underway?

I’ve been working hard to produce my novels as paperback versions and I now have the job done. I’ll be writing a dedicated post about the process, or as it became for me, the ‘journey’, but for now, I’ll give you a look at a few of my efforts. I’ll display the full range of my paperbacks in March.