Category Archives: Urban Fantasy

An accidental novelist, or was I?

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You could say I became a novelist by accident. Sometimes the best things in life happen when you’re not quite paying attention.

CIRCUIT BREAKERS

Previous writing was non-fiction or articles, with the occasional interview or editorial thrown in for fun. However, NaNoWriMo, the national novel writing month, sneaked up on me and challenged me to have a go at it.

Along the way, I encouraged Raven to do the same thing. However, he already had one novel written. NaNoWriMo was his excuse to try a slightly different genre (murder mystery) while he kept me company.

Nowadays, I can hardly imagine life without plots in the background, characters whispering about new adventures, and the lure of words. I am quite caught by the writing bug and expect it will never again let me go. Every day, there is some new plot or sub plot that springs to mind. I have been parking the non-fiction for the while, however, over the summer I plan to get a couple of the how-to books out of the way. They’ve been calling to me from the back of my mind, demanding their own attention.

Time to dream, perchance to solve a plot or two whilst sleeping.

Cheers

Ria

Reading DeLint

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I have been reading Charles DeLint again lately. One of his later books, The Painted Boy, is a particular favorite. I like the shape changing that occurs, and how it is tied to a family legacy and responsibility. It has a multicultural layer, with the inevitable clash of cultures, however, what intrigues me is the way DeLint talks about things that draw people together, the ways in which they find connection in the pursuit of service to their chosen community. This story stands alone, away from the world of Newford, yet it echoes a bunch of the themes present in those stories.

MoonheartI was enjoying myself so much reading The Painted Boy, I decided to go back to some of the earlier works that spoke to me. I am currently re-reading Moonheart by DeLint. The online version has lovely illustrations, which are a happy addition to the original work. I first read Moonheart in 1987 when I was traveling for the first time. It seemed, at the time, that the journey of the protagonist, Sara, was echoed by my own journey at the time. I remember thinking that the traveler sees things more clearly because they are ‘out of context’ and cannot help but engage from a place of stillness. I recall thinking that if I could ‘act from the listening place’ that ‘right action’ may follow. I’m not sure how well I did in comparison with my fictional role model, but it sure made for good reading.

In reading the stories again, I find I am looking for the familiar threads that run through them. Along the way, I am discovering things I missed the first time around. I had not remembered there were so many threads of government agencies tampering, or attempting to, with the paranormal for instance. That added to the tension of the story by racking up a body count to contrast against the much more thoughtful actions of our newly talented heroine. The obstacles against her were not only paranormal, but physical. There were many levels to the layers of conflict. Nice job.

After this, I think I’ll give another couple of his early works another read. He’s the master of weaving together urban fantasy. I particularly recommend ‘Riddle of the Wren’ and ‘Moonheart’ for new readers. Check out his amazon author page.

Now I’m going to dive back into Moonheart.