Guest Author-Tonya Macalino

Tonya Macalino is my guest blogger today.  She is the author of The Shades of Venice series.  These novels are urban fantasy thrillers featuring folklore and folk history from the collapsing canals and alleyways of Venice.

Leda and the Swan: From the End of The Age of Heroes Rises a New Legend

Once upon a time…

Once upon time, a single moment, a typical moment of amorous indiscretion brought about the end of The Age of Heroes. For in that moment, the leader of the Greek gods, the almighty Zeus, took the form of a swan to mask from his ever-jealous wife Hera another of his endless pursuits. With Leda, Queen of Sparta, he begat that ending in the shining form of Helen.

 

Helen of Sparta, who was to become Helen of Troy, received the gift of beauty, but was denied the gifts of honest love and deepest friendship. Twice kidnapped—once by Theseus and once by Paris—because of her beauty and divine heritage, she lived ultimately to become the downfall of Troy. The face that launched a thousand ships.

A generation of heroes died on the plains of Troy not to see her liberated or even truly to see her husband’s pride avenged, but simply because, as her former suitors, these kings and heroes had been made to swear an oath to defend the marriage lest the losers in the bid for her hand slaughter one another.

An oath to prevent a slaughter.

An oath culminating in ten years of bloody war. Ten years that would leave Helen friendless on either side of the ramparts and throughout the civilized world long after the war was over. Passed along from the burning ruins of a once great city, she would continue to be a pawn in the plots of gods and kings until her life was ultimately ended by them.

But something else passed along from those burning ruins, something arose, slowly from the end of The Age of Heroes. Antenor, advisor to the royal Trojan family, escaped the flames with his Veneti. They fled the Aegean and emerged into the Adriatic, settling Pavatium in 1183 B.C.

Near noble Pavatium, or Padua as it was to become known, were a chain of islands in the lagoon, a place to flee to during the relentless sieges and raids of the Huns and Romans. Rife with mosquitoes and diseases, the islands became a refuge for the descendants of these Veneti.

A lagoon, a scattering of islands.

The legendary empire of The Most Serene Republic…of Venice.

Helen and her tragedy would live on in thousands of years of myth built up into the romantic, decaying city of Venice we know today. Myths of mermaids, sea creatures, doomed monks, vengeful Doges…and of fairy-witches known as fate. Yes, fate. Whether because the Veneti brought Leda, Helen, and their capricious gods with them, or because of a Roman influence, the three sister Fates found their reincarnation in the stories of the lagoon.

Stories that continue to lurk in our psyches on into the modern day.

But now I invite you to come a little further forward, one hundred years—a mere moment in the time of myth—and watch a new woman, Alyse Kate Bryant, struggle to become disentangled from those fated, flooded ruins…as the legends of Venice rise again.

 

Here are some links to keep up on the words and works of Tonya:

 

Website: www.tonyamacalino.com

The Story of Place Blog: http://www.tonyamacalino.com/Blog.html

Facebook: www.facebook.com/TonyaMacalino

The Myth Makers Newsletter: www.facebook.com/TheMythMakers

Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/Tonya-Macalino/e/B0058U4TJA/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1

Goodreads: www.goodreads.com/tonyamacalino

Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/TonyaMacalino

Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/tonyamacalino/

 

FACES IN THE WATER - Book Links:

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Faces-Water-Shades-Venice-Episode/dp/098363033X/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1332452714&sr=8-3

Barnes & Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/faces-in-the-water-tonya-macalino/1107970376?ean=2940013883406&itm=1&usri=macalino

SPECTRE OF INTENTION - Book Links:

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Spectre-Intention-Tonya-Macalino/dp/0983630305/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1312914650&sr=8-1

Barnes & Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/spectre-of-intention-tonya-macalino/1100481815?ean=9780983630302&itm=1&usri=macalino

 

Making the Myths Innocent

Perhaps my biggest struggle in trying to write YA fiction that borrows from Norse Mythology, is attempting to tame stories that can sometimes be full of rather bawdy material. The real labor is in trying to turn them into something considered innocent. Sometimes the task becomes a process of pure translation as I take a story like “The Necklace of the Brisings” - a tale that has the goddess Freyja spending four nights in a row with four different dwarfs - and then retell it, introducing my main characters into the roles normally reserved for mythical creatures. The subject of extreme violence can also be problematic. For instance, the myth of “Thor and Geirrod” - a story that portrays a violent, rather grotesque death - describes Thor hurling a flaming ball of iron at a giant, puncturing a large hole in his midriff. In my retelling, Zeke Proper takes on the role of Thor and begins to discover his own hidden, inner strengths.
           
As an example, I would like to delve into the next installment of the Zeke Proper Chronicles: The Gates of Asgard. I will begin by exposing portions of Chapter Twelve: “Geirrod’s Stronghold“. In keeping with the adventures that the Mist plays in the young hero’s quest, the narrative has the Proper brothers, Zeke and Devon trapped in the Mist in a palace made of roughly hewn timber and logs. The stronghold belongs to Geirrod, a giant who, in the original telling of the myth, faces off with Thor in a furnace-filled room. The furnaces contain molten iron that Geirrod picks up with tongs and hurls at Thor. Geirrod’s hatred toward the god is magnified because Thor killed Hrungnir - strongest of all the giants. However, Thor takes the battle in the end because he catches the tossed ball of fire in his iron gloves. After a moment of hesitation, Thor hurls the ball back at Geirrod, thus destroying him.
           
The Zeke Proper Chronicles’ version goes something like this:

Zeke and Devon followed the servant…Soon they arrived in their original place of captivity, a place where the ceiling domed high, where the walls were covered with pine logs, and where the smoke of furnace fires drifted heavy in the air, making the room too warm for comfort. Staring at them from the far end of the hall was a giant of a man. His hair was long and hung past his shoulders in blond and red waves. A bristly beard of the same color covered his face. He was tall, but more than that, he was strong. Neck muscles flexed when he moved, blending with ripples of strength in his arms and chest.

Geirrod stretched forth his hand, but it was not to greet Zeke or Devon; it was to pick up a pair of tongs. With them, he reached toward one of the red-hot furnaces and retrieved a glowing piece of coal.
           
“Welcome to my palace!” he shouted, and aimed the fiery lump straight at Zeke.     Zeke continued to stare, feeling as if time had suddenly stopped as he watched the sizzling missile advance toward his face.  At the last moment, just before the red-hot coal struck him, he bent, his thigh muscle crying out in pain. The burning lump of coal jetted past him, struck the log wall behind, and sputtered to a dead, black ember.
           
“Ah! You’re quick, boy. I’m quicker, though. In the end I’ll see ya burn!”
           
Devon ran up from behind Zeke, grabbing him by the shoulder. “The staff, you idiot! Use the staff!”
           
Zeke rose quickly and used the strength of his arms to push himself into a standing position. He gripped the staff with both hands holding it like a baseball bat. Geirrod sent another molten missile at Zeke’s face, but this time Zeke stood his ground with his feet square and his eyes watching as the ball of fire approached.    
           
Zeke swung Sinmora’s staff with every ounce of strength he possessed. He connected with the glowing coal like a major-leaguer, its trajectory bending toward Geirrod. Everyone who stood as witness in the great hall, giants and dwarfs alike, scrambled under the tables as Geirrod himself tried to step behind one of the hall supports. However, the fiery ball punched through the support, passing through the giant’s midriff, and continuing through the wooden wall finally lodging itself in an earth slope outside the building.
           
Geirrod stood up straight - a strange, defeated look on his face - and looked down at the hole in his chest. He gasped and then hissed, as if all of the hate and venom built up inside him suddenly escaped. He gave one violent jerk, gurgled and was dead.

The third installment of The Zeke Proper Chronicles - The Gates of Asgard will be out this summer. Order your copies of Book One and Two and get caught up in the myth.

-Brad

The Next Big Thing

I've just been tagged in The Next Big Thing, by my friend and fellow NIWA member, Tonya Macalino. The Next Big Thing is a way for writers to share and discuss their work and their upcoming projects. Tonya is the author of Author of SPECTRE OF INTENTION and THE SHADES OF VENICE series. 

 

You can read her post about "The Next Big Thing" and her upcoming work here.

THE NEXT BIG THING INTERVIEW

What is the working title of your new book?

Currently, I am working on Book 3 in The Zeke Proper Chronicles: The Gates of Asgard. Books 1 and 2 are respectively -Odin’s Light and The Serpent’s Ship. Both books are available through Amazon on Kindle eBooks and in paperback. 

Where did the idea come from for the book?

This is one of those questions that when I answer it honestly, it always gets a raised eyebrow. Probably because it is so cliché. Nevertheless, it is true. The idea came from a dream. I had been playing around with various storylines, jotting down notes here and there, and putting together many incomplete short stories. Then one night I had a dream. When I woke up, I knew what I was going to write. The original idea changed  considerably during the writing process, but the initial energy was there, and I took it and ran with it

What genre is your book?

My books are YA Fantasy Fiction. Urban Fiction is probably closer. My characters live in present day Nova Scotia in a fictionaltown called Alder Cove. However, as the story progresses, they begin rubbing shoulders with the Norse gods of the past.

Which actors would you choose to play the characters in a movie rendition?

Zeke Proper - Cole Sprouse

Devon Proper - Mitchel Musso

Taylre Anders - Taylor Swift

Percy Proper - Jake Johnson

The Captain - Ian McNeice

Vivian Proper - Zooey Deschanel

Loden/Loki - Johnny Depp

Marjorie Anders - Selina Cadell

What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?

The Zeke Proper Chronicles is a coming of age novel that explores a young man’s connection with the Mist and the Norse Gods.

Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?

As all of my books are, The Gates of Asgard, the third installment in The Zeke Proper Chronicles, will be self-published through World Tree Fantasy.

How long did it take to write the first Draft of the first novel?

Dog Ear Publishing completed the original printing of my first novel. The original title was Zeke Proper and the Sacrifice at Alder Cove. Writing the draft that I sent to that publisher took me well over five years to complete. However, keep in mind; I took a lot of time off in the writing process. In the end, I was very unhappy with the result of the publication. Therefore, I took the original manuscript, rewrote a major portion of it, and renamed it Odin’s Light.

What are some current novels that you would compare with your novels?

I really hate to make comparisons, because I feel my books are unique. Nevertheless, my best guess would probably be the Percy Jackson Series and perhaps Fable Haven, simply because they also deal with some aspect of Mythology.

Who or what inspired you to write?

There are two writers that have had a huge impact on my own writing, mostly because they implement an incredible use of imagery and figurative language. Ray Bradbury, whose prophetic voice captures a true essence of the future, and Stephen King.  Guy who really knows how to tell a scary story. His images are at the same tactile as well as emotional.

In the coming weeks, another friend and fellow author of mine, Raymond Macalino, will be discussing his "Next Big Thing" on his blog. He is the author of a picture book for children titled, Damien and the Dragon Kite.  Make sure to check that out here!

Guest Blog by Ksenia Anske

This week, I am excited to be hosting author, Ksenia Anske.  Ksenia was born in Moscow, Russia, and came to US in 1998 not knowing English, having studied architecture and not dreaming that one day she'd be writing.  SIREN SUICIDES, an urban fantasy set in Seattle, is her 1st novel.

I was invited by Brad Cameron to guest post on his blog and have been thinking about what to write, when my Beta Readers asked me to write about my obsession, errr... fascination with sirens, because this is what my 1st novel is about, SIRENS. Yes, so, let's see, where did it start? Ah, I know, with Rusalkas. I'll explain in a second. You see, if you told me about 15 years ago that I would be writing novels, more than that, that I'd be writing novels in English, I'd probably look at you like you were mad. Because back then not only did I not know any English at all (well, except "Hello" and "I love you" both of which I heard in pop songs), I didn't know how to write either, having been told since high school that my writing sucks because I have "too much imagination." I always got B's and never A's on my essays, but that didn't stop me from being fascinated with magical creatures from Russian fairy tales, a lot of which reside in the woods, and swamps, and bogs, and ponds. Especially Rusalkas. Mermaids, in English.

I can't pinpoint the exact moment when this interest in Rusalkas struck me, only the fact that when I was studying acting in my teens (yeah, I wanted to be an actress once upon a time) I spent hours in the library looking up the history of Russian theater and folklore and stumbled on so many legends involving Rusalkas that eventually I forgot all about my research and started reading more about them. Hey, what's not to like? In Slavik mythology, unlike a mermaid, a Rusalka is not simply a woman who changed into a magical being, but a woman who has died violently, before her time, or from suicide. She also had to die in or near a river or a lake, to claim it as her territory. Once her murder was avenged, however, she could die in peace. The dark angle of this myth fascinated me, especially because I've been a suicidal teenager and a runaway (I ran away from home at 16, got pregnant at 17, had my daughter at 18, you get the picture). I think since then I had an image of this unhappy girl in my mind and it touched me deeply because of my personal history which included very dark childhood with a lot of trauma of which I was not aware until my thirties, until I settled in life and became happy.

That's when Rusalkas started knocking again, from deep inside, from some hidden corners of my mind. I ignored this for a while, but the ideas kept pouring, and somehow along the way they transformed from Rusalkas to sirens because of the deeper history and acceptance of Greek mythology in America where anyone I told about Rusalkas blinked at me, but where sirens did ring a bell. To me it didn't really matter what these creatures should be called, as long as they helped me tell my story, and my story was about a girl finding her voice, as simple as that. Partly, it's my own struggle in life, partly it's the story of my main character, a teenage girl, who struggles with the same problem, to the point of wanting to take her life via suicide. It was all about the voice, the song, the scream for help. I guess the slightly violent tone of this, the "I-will-scream-in-your-face-if-you-don't-hear-me" sat better with sirens, who in Greek mythology are originating from 3 sisters with bird wings and bird voices, who lured men to their deaths in their siren meadow on an island and who threw themselves into the sea after Odysseus fooled them. They lost their wings and drowned. Maybe, maybe not. Mythology leaves us there. And that's where I pick up. I say, nope, they didn't die, they continued on living, sucking out souls from people as food, and singing, singing, singing.

There you have it. These are my sirens, and that's why I'm fascinated with them. They are a perfect blend of a bad girl and an innocent maiden, the yin and the yang in one body, beautiful and elusively ugly, sophisticated and primitive at the same time, and they are... women. Along with suicide, another underlying theme in my novel is misogyny, or hatred or dislike of women and girls, which I had to experience myself growing up and which is why I'm writing this novel, to shed the light on how it feels from the inside.

Oh, and I live in Seattle. It rains here all the time. What else to write about, if not about water creatures?
- Ksenia anske

Novel excerpt: http://www.kseniaanske.com/blog/2012/12/24/siren-suicides-excerpt-draft-5.html
Blog: http://www.kseniaanske.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/kseniaanske
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ksenia.anske
Google+: https://plus.google.com/109572538028745590669/posts
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/kseniaanske/
Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/kseniaanske/
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/10221719-ksenia
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/gp/pdp/profile/A19ELGT118RK4J?ie=UTF8&ref_=cm_cr_yc_pdp
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/kseniaanske

Dragons in Norse Mythology

Recently, I spoke at the Rad/Con Science Fiction Fair in Pasco, Washington.  I felt honored to be part of not one but four panels that discuss everything from the business of Indie publishing to the advent of magic in medieval and renaissance fiction. However, the one that I was most excited about was the panel titled “Dragons and their Evolution”.  My emphasis, of course, was dragons in Norse mythology. So, as a dedication to the very fine, though quite unusual people that inhabit the Con circuit, I would like to rehash some of the finer points that I made during my speech.

I have mentioned before - in earlier blog entries - the makeup of the Norse universe with its nine worlds and the great ash tree, Yggdrasil, which binds them all together. However, it may be interesting to note that, apart from the many residents that make up the nine worlds, there are also several creatures that inhabit the limbs and branches of the tree. These beasts take their toll on the tree (which is constantly under repair by the Norns - another topic for blog discussion), as a result, the tree is constantly in danger. Its roots are rotting.

At the bottom, near Niflheim, sits Nidhogg, a serpent, or, perhaps more appropriately stated, a dragon. Nidhogg has scales, wings, and bristles that spike over its spine. Nidhogg is a being that gnaws one of the three roots of Yggdrasil. It is believed that the roots are trapping the beast from the world (Midgard). This root is placed over Niflheim and Nidhogg gnaws it from beneath. However, other than the creature’s conversations with the giant squirrel that scurries up and down the tree, passing insults from the dragon to the great eagle that sits atop Yggdrasil; little else is said, other than the fact that eventually the dragon will gnaw its way through the roots. The first sighting of the dragon will signify the beginning of Ragnarok.

The first indication of a fire-breathing dragon appears in the Old English retelling of “Beowulf”, an epic Norse poem that describes a hero’s eventual confrontation with Bane, a nocturnal, treasure hoarding, fire-breathing creature that brings about the death of Beowulf. The Beowulf dragon is the earliest example in literature of the typical European dragon and first incidence of a fire-breathing dragon. However, because a Christian Monk probably wrote the poem with Northman ties, the symbols have most likely become tainted. For instance, the fire is likely symbolic of the hell-fire of the Devil, reminiscent of a monster described in the Old Testament. The Pagan would not have known any such place. Nevertheless, the author appears to be trying hard to appeal to his audience.

 In the story, Beowulf eventually returns to his home and becomes king of the Geats. After ruling for fifty years, a servant awakens and angers the dragon, stealing a jeweled cup from its lair. When the dragon mercilessly burns the Geats' homes and lands, Beowulf decides to kill the monster. He and his men climb to the dragon's lair where, seeing the beast, the men run away leaving only Wiglaf to battle at Beowulf's side. When the dragon wounds Beowulf fatally, Wiglaf slays it.

Contemporary stories and films have taken the dragon myth to a completely new level. It is important, however, to keep in mind that its beginnings were nominal. The stories existed, but they were symbolic at best. The message I believe the Norse would want us to take from their myths is that nothing is forever. Their gods were not immortal, powerful, yes, but not immune to death. Dragons represent powers that can inflict our day-to-day struggles. They gnaw away at our roots. Nevertheless, we need to be aware of their existence and fight each day to shore up our own selves.

 

References: Crossley-Holland, Kevin. The Norse Myths. New York, NY: Pantheon Books, 1980. Print

-Brad

Guest Blog- Katie Mettner

Katie Mettner is our guest blogger for this week.  Katie grew up in Eau Claire, Wisconsin and moved to the Northwoods where she now resides with her husband and three children. As a young adult Katie enjoyed ballroom dancing and like Sugar, she didn’t let her physical limitations hold her back from what she loved. Katie writes The Sugar Series, Sugar’s Dance and Sugar’s Song, a Christian romance series. Her stories are a reflection of her love for family intricately woven with life experience. When the gales of November blow early you can find her at the computer with a cup of joe, listening to Michael Bublé and working on Sugar's Night.

“Are you there God? It’s me, Katie.”

Judy Blume was always my favorite author as a child and I would often find myself praying that sentence off and on for 20 years. I bartered and begged with Him, but for the life of me I couldn’t get Him to answer my questions. So sneaky like I started asking the question “why” using fancier words, that’s what authors do, right? I found this more productive; I’d ask a question and He would put someone in my way with the answer. This went on for years until February 16, 2011 when I was laying in a hospital bed as a left below knee amputee. That night I reverted to “Are you there God? It’s me, Katie. Now what?” I was waiting for an answer when a nurse came in with a CD. I listened to the voice of Michael Bublé and John Mayer and this peace washed over me. His answer was obvious, “Now we dance.”

So you might be asking yourself what this has to do with being an author. My series of Christian romance, The Sugar’s Series, features Sugar, a mid western ballroom dancer who, like me, lost a lot in life and found herself Dreaming with a Broken Heart. I began to write Sugar’s Dance while waiting to walk again and found her story came faster than I could type it. My intention was not to write Sugar’s story as a Christian romance, in fact I really had no intention of even publishing it. My intention was to write it for me. As I wrote I found Sugar asked “Why God?” a lot. I was pretty uncomfortable with it, but since this was her journey I carried on. Then one night I said, “Are you there God?” and I poured my heart about how I wasn’t sure if it was “right” to write a book that could be construed as a Christian romance, if I ever did publish it, when the underlying theme of the character’s relationship with Him was, “I’m still mad at Him and He knows that. I can agree to be friends with Him, but I haven’t figured out how to love Him again.” When I got up the next day I avoided Sugar like the plague. I didn’t want to admit to myself maybe there was a little of me in Sugar, so I put my MP3 player on and the first two songs were ‘Bridge Over Troubled Water’ and ‘Say’. I blew out a breath and opened the document. Without even thinking this is what came through, “That is one of the most frank admittances of imperfection I have ever heard. You are a surprise around every corner Sugar. The fact that you still come out here to talk to Him and you believe in that higher power is admirable considering what you have been through. I’m inclined to believe that He loves you for your honesty because I don’t believe He gets that from a lot of his worshippers.” And with that we began to waltz.

As the days turned into weeks Sugar’s story flowed and I continued to let her ask “Why?” As her story progressed she began to see the reasons why and so did I. By the time I had the first solid 14 chapters of the book written I was up walking on two feet again, just 5 weeks after that night in the hospital, lucky to have a very talented friend helping me. When I hit chapter 25 I needed to do some hardcore research of the Twin Ports. We spend a lot of time in the Duluth/Cloquet Minnesota area because it’s where my husband grew up. When I decided Sugar would live there I knew the book had to be as close to 100% accurate as I could make it and that meant lots of trips north. It's summer now and I’m holding my husband’s hand as he walked me through Canal Park. I’m smiling as I see another reason for the last 20 years; appreciation of the simple things like holding hands. By the time summer comes to a close I have the final chapter to write. Needing to get this scene EXACTLY right I found myself staring down the sand covered path that led to the beach on Canal Park. Sand isn’t easy for an amputee, but with some slipping and sliding I found myself standing in Lake Superior! As I stood there with the cold water lapping over my foot smiling for the camera, I was sure our waltz was over and I had the reason!

Nope, not even close. After much painful consideration and encouragement from friends I hit publish. Okay dance over, her story is told! Nope. Don’t get me wrong, it felt great, but I was comfortable now in the dance and knew there was more. I started getting emails telling me Sugar had changed their perspective and validated their own struggles and others asking me to finish her story, so I answered Him with Sugar’s Song. Once again He put people in my path that I needed to meet. There were friends from Sugar’s World (Duluth) who shared their struggles with me. I met two wonderful groups of authors, locally and virtually, who became the lamp unto my feet during a time this summer when I struggled to finish her Song. It’s November and I hit that publish button again and this time I didn’t question if I had the reason, because I knew I didn’t. Sugar had an encore to dance and I sat down to write Sugar’s Night. As the words poured out He laid Sugar’s “why” right out in front of me. BAM! I got up and walked around before reading it again and yup there it was in black and white. Being a good author I’m not going to tell you Sugar’s “why” for that would ruin the journey. I will tell you I have found the answer to mine. As I type this short waltz through my last two years a new opportunity to help fellow amputees just arrived in my inbox, so I no longer ask “Are you there God?” Now I simply say, “I’m here God, lead on.”

Twitter: @katiemettner

Facebook: facebook.com/pages/Katie-Mettner-Author/228147413916391
Website: www.katiemettnerbooks.com

Guest Blog- Chris Snelgrove

This week, I have invited author, Chris Snelgrove, to Guest Blog. Chris Snelgrove is the owner of the audio book publishing company DarkFire Productions, the producer of The House of Grey series, and co-author of YA thriller series: Harmonics.

The Art of Suspenseful Marketing 

A shadowy figure peers out from behind a column in a dark subway station. He leers malevolently at a young girl as she texts on her phone. Without arousing suspicion, he looks around and sees the last of the commuters head up the stairs. Without making a sound, he creeps around the backside of the column and positions himself behind the unsuspecting girl. The distant echoes of the rumbling train sound off to his right. He takes one last look around as the approaching cacophony of squeals, booms, and clacks grows louder. Just as the girl looks up, finally able to hear the approaching train over the music beating through her ear buds, the dark figure cocks his arms back and lunges forward.  

Lee Child, author of the popular Jack Reacher novels, wrote an op-ed piece in the New York Times on creating suspense. In it, he mentioned that as a bestselling author, he is asked many times how to create suspense. His response was both insightful, and something every author, marketer, advertiser, and shoe salesman should pay attention to. The question is not “how do you bake a cake” but rather, “how do you make your family hungry.”  

So did he push her? Did someone see him and at the last moment yell to stop him?

“Whodunit” has been a tactic used by authors of every generation not merely because of its time-tested nature, but because it taps into a basic human emotion-closure. As humans, we see everything in a finite scope. Birth-days, funerals, sun-rise, sun-set. We like everything in nice neat linear packages. So when we come across something that hasn’t found its inevitable close, somewhere in our lizard-brain a switch clicks on, and we become interested in seeing how it ends.

Talk with your friends and all of them can come up with a list of bad books, terrible movies, and dry TV series. Talk to them a little more and most of them read the entire tome, sat in the theater until the credits, and watched to the end of the season just to make sure it didn’t all of a sudden get good. Why? Because all of us like closure.

What made her the focus of his wrath? Why was she all alone in a dark subway station?

So what does closure have anything to do with marketing and serialization? Everything in fact. When you can delay closure, you create suspense. When you create suspense, even with bad characters, poor writing, and plot holes, people want to know how it ends. Does Luke turn to the Dark Side? Does Frodo destroy the ring? Does Bella end up with Edward or Jacob?

Back in the 1940s, the popular radio program Superman was masterfully done on a weekly basis. The Man of Steel would leap into a burning building despite protests of firefighters and concerned citizens. Just as they thought all hope was lost...tune in next week to see what happens. Now a message from our sponsor, Life Buoy soap.

Why did he not like the girl? Did he know her?

Because you had to wait a whole week to hear if Superman came out unscathed, something in your mind tagged that narrative as unfinished. There wasn’t a resolution yet. And while you knew your superhero would of course save the girl, the cat, and the day, you would still sit and listen...to find closure, to change that tag in your mind from unfinished to put right.

Did she know him? Was this his first attempt?

Likewise, good authors don’t go around rattling off ingredients for cakes, but rather, as Child puts it, they make their family wait four hours to eat dinner. Good authors create hunger. They dole out little bits and pieces of resolution, but always hold just enough back that the reader turns the page to the next chapter. In fact, brilliant authors can come out on page one, tell you who killed Roger Rabbit, and then explain that they don’t know why he was killed, and people will still read to the end to find out the killer’s motives. Jealousy, revenge, vengeance, the killer just doesn’t like cartoon characters. It doesn’t matter. Since the question was asked, folks want to know the answer.

Using Child’s concluding thoughts, “Trusting such a simple system feels cheap and meretricious while you’re doing it. But it works. It’s all you need... The basic narrative fuel is always the slow unveiling of the final answer. So don’t bake cakes. Make your family hungry instead.”

Did she die...or was she spared at the last moment. That’s what makes suspense such a valuable marketing tool.

-Chris Snelgrove

Twitter- @ChrisSnelgrove

Facebook- faceboook.com/ChrisSnelgrove
SilverStoneBooks.com

The House of Grey Series:

Amazon - http://amzn.to/zcVylC

Barnes& Noble - http://bit.ly/OTDUaf
Kobo - http://bit.ly/QW3Ojk
Sony- http://bit.ly/VBFTTo

The Harmonics Series:

Amazon - http://bit.ly/PA6ZGQ

Barnes& Noble - http://bit.ly/LJSGh7
Kobo - http://bit.ly/KqvqV