Tools of the trade...

Top image: If a character hasn't come to life for me, sometimes I have to sketch them out. I made a quickie character card and tried to flesh out Aidan's friend Robby, and then later, Merewen.

2nd image: 3 cool things on this page. First, in the midst of a manuscript, invariably logic problems arise--if Aidan was in Yewland on Monday, how can he possibly be in the Blue Mountains by Tuesday? That kind of thing. Some problems are more vexing than others, but I write them down either way. Otherwise, I'll forget, and the story suffers.

Then, you'll notice that I had a huge problem with my chief villain. Initially, I had given him the name "One of pure light," which in the old language would be "Paracrist." But a smart friend pointed out that having ANYTHING that even remotely sounded like Jesus…associated with the villain is a BAD IDEA. Whew, glad I have smart friends. Where was my brain? You can see me struggling with every root and medieval sounding alternative. But, as you see, Paragor won out. Funny how now, it seems like it could not be anything else.

And finally, see the little drawing of Pennath Ador, the mountains of glory. This is my favorite rendering of that icon of the story. I have a wonderful friend who actually commisioned a silversmith to fashion a lapel pin with those mountains on it.

Early Door Within Scrawls

The top page shows my initial visualizing of the moonrascal critters. I like to doodle. Can you tell? I also wrote a bunch of notes from Stephen King's On Writing. Great book about the craft. I don't agree with everything King preaches, for sure, but he knows the craft.

The bottom page shows some VERY early musings about the first few chapters of The Door Within. One of the similes I'm most proud of is there. His father's hand, the hand that had been a comfort, Aidan shrugged it off like it was a wasp. Also, notice that in this early stage, Aidan was…well, Wayne. What a rookie I was. lol

The Door Within: Behind the Scenes Part One

The posts that follow tonight are a series of images show how The Door Within Trilogy came about. These are old outlines, background notes, and mindless scrawl of every possible story ingredient. I'd love to say I am ultra organzied and have some huge corkboard with everything neatly categorized and storyboarded, but…I'm not, and I don't. ;-)

I do outline, but I keep plenty of scrap paper around for meandering bits of dialogue or events from yet unwritten chapters. Just a warning, there may be some BIG spoilers, so read at your own risk. LOL

The Full Door Within Trilogy Video

I've now loaded the full 7 minute version of The Door Within Trilogy Promotional Video that I made last spring. I use it at signings and especially at school visits. The software I used: Bryce 3D for the still fantasy scenes, iMovieHD for the actual movie, and LiveType for the titling. The short version on the right had an issue being half cut off on some browsers, so I put this full version at the bottom. You'll find it beneath the posts. Hope you like it.

The Door Within Trilogy Trailer!

Book Trailers seem to be gaining popularity. A Barnes and Noble CRM once told me that most big chain bookstores will be installing large, flatscreen TVs that do nothing but run loops of book trailers all day long!

I've been a big fan of Apple's iMovie for quite some time. It has some remarkable applications for authors--esp. for the aforementioned book trailers. The way iMovie integrates with other software: LiveType (for titling), Soundtrack and iTunes (for music), and iPhoto (for still shots and artwork) is nothing short of amazing. I spent most of last spring creating a full length Door Within video trailer. I took the video with me to the International Christian Retailers Show and we displayed it on TVs on the floor while I did signing. Surprising me completely, Tommy Nelson liked it enough to offer to put it on some of their DVDs.

Of course, my video was 7 minutes! :-0

They had their most excellent video guy trim and revise to make it a 90 sec. spot. This is what you see here on the right. And now, with the addition of sites like YouTube and MySpace, you have marvelous forums to promote your books.

Let me know what you think of the trailer.

Then, as a side issue--what do you all think about MySpace? It has some awful stuff on it--racy ads and such. And there have been far too many stories about predators lurking on such sites or teens using it in less than savory ways.

But…that said, it offers some amazing possibilities to reach people with your books. Like the Internet in general, it seems like a vessel that can be used for good or ill. What do you think?

More Door Within Desktop Artwork

In preparation for the CSFF Blog Tour, here are two more Door Within Trilogy images you can right click download for your site or personal computer.

The Christian Science Fiction and Fantasy Blog Tour (CSFF)
will feature The Door Within Trilogy on January 22, 23, 24th!

This means that over 60 Blogs will be featuring all things Door Within:

• Professional Reviews of The Door Within,
Rise of the Wyrm Lord, and The Final Storm!

• Interviews and Guest Blogging from the author,
Wayne Thomas Batson<---Click for Cheesey Author Photo! • Behind the Scenes looks at all three books--including pages from the earliest manuscripts! • Free Downloadable Desktop Art for The Door Within Books!

• A Surprise Announcement About the Lost Scrolls
of The Realm (Have they been found at last?)


Visit the OFFICIAL Blog Tour Website:

CSFF Blog Tour

All you have to do is visit ANY (or MANY) of the 60 Blogs
listed at the home site on January 22, 23, or 24th.

Not only can you enjoy Door Within content
that's available no where else, but you can comment, ask questions, and
Chat with the Author and other Door Within fans!

Mark Your Calendars Now!

Hope to see you there.

Never Alone!

The Best Sort of Surgery

Since finishing the Isle of Swords manuscript on Dec. 31st, I've received and completed two additional sets of edits. As mentioned in the previous post, I've worked with the same editor, a wonderful lady named June, for all of my published books. She's dynamite, and I've learned a metric ton from her.

But…since I somehow have a knack for overshooting my word count by about 10,000-20,000 words, there has been a lot of cutting. For those wondering what I mean by "overshooting my word count," I don't know if all publishers work this way, but for my books, the publisher has predetermined a word count range. I believe it has something to do with typesetting and the number of signatures that will eventually make up the book. Seems like it would make more sense to just have the author write the book and THEN figure out the signatures and such, but oh, well! lol

Being so far over word count means I needed to cut a lot of content from the books. The Final Storm was the hardest b/c I needed to cut almost 20,000 words. But a funny thing happens when you start cutting: you begin to ask the most important question a writer can ask: "Why is this scene in my book?"

Seriously, you need to be cold, hard, and honest about this. The wonderful, clever, witty, yummy scene that you've so colorfully drawn up…uh, does it really belong? If it was missing, would anyone really notice?

When I cut (or my editor cuts) it hurts--A LOT, but it really is the best sort of surgery. Rarely have I been disappointed with the end result of a chapter or scene after cuts. Usually, the scene ends up much stronger, much more powerful or poignant.

For The Door Within, my editors made (read: strongly suggested, and being newly signed, I didn't argue) me cut the first three chapters! Ouch. But in the end, the opening chapters are much more captivating--they hook the reader unlike my original plan.

This is all not to say that I don't disagree with my editors. We go at it via email all the time. But the struggle helps me to define what I really wanted in the story in the first place.

The moral to this tome: send your editor some love; their surgery may save your novel.

The Editor Author Relationship...

I've worked with my editor at TN, June Ford, going on four books now. She's a very insightful lady with a real gift for analyzing the pacing of a story. I've learned tons from her about such things as:
1. Eliminating most passive verbs
2. Working with short, salient blocks of description for settings
3. Giving each character a signature--either in their dialog or something in their physical description. A scar on one cheek, a limp, a thick neck, the overuse of a word, etc.

Great stuff.

But one thing I've noticed--and this I find both hilarious and somewhat disturbing--is that we are starting to think alike. Perhaps more accurately, I'm beginning to write and think at times the June does.

Just last night working through a set of edits for Isle of Swords, I came across one of June's notes about a scene where Ross, the roguish but affable pirate, attacks a Spanish Galleon. June suggested that my character Ross would most likely know the Spanish language, but he could test Father Dominguez (a special passenger on Ross's ship) by asking him to translate what the Spaniards are saying. Funny thing was, I had completely fleshed that out in one version of the manuscript--before June had ever said anything about it!

And this was one of many instances where I found myself reading June's mind or vice versa. Scary, eh?

Custom Artwork for The Door Within Trilogy

I've always loved to draw. In elementary school, I was often the student who sketched away until the teacher crumbled up my drawing and tossed it. Probably didn't help that I did my own sound effects while drawing. ;-)

A few years before The Door Within was published, I found a digital art program called Bryce 3D by Daz Studios--UN-BE-LIEVABLE!! This software allowed my imagination to do everything it ever wanted to do. And…since the DW books have come out, I've had a blast drawing art to go with the books. Some of it (Yewland, for instance) really helped me to visualize the scenes I wanted to write.

Here are some of the images. I'm new to all this blog upload stuff, so these pics may end up rather small. We'll see. Hope you like them.

When the muse strikes...

I finished the Isle of Swords manuscript just six days ago. There was exhilaration but, truth be told, it was mixed with exhaustion. It's hard to describe how emotionally and physically drained I felt after the sprint to the finish line. But…

Just a few days later, I feel myself positively stoked with a new story idea. It's actually one I'd been wrestling with for a while, but new elements and plot points are coming together rapidly. And I have to admit, this could be big. This could be EPIC big. But most of all, it feels like fun. How do you know what God's will is for you? I can't speak for everyone, but it seems to me that if you find something you can do well, something that challenges you, kicks your tail from time to time, and you still can't seem to get enough of it…maybe that's God's will for you. So long as what you do lives up to scriptural scrutiny, that is. ;-)

Front Matter matters…or does it?

Working on the front matter for Isle of Swords now. With The Door Within Books, my editors and I agreed it was a good idea to include a List of Characters and Principal Settings, each with a pronunciation guide.

For Isle of Swords, my editors again have asked for this. We are also including two diagrams" a map of the Caribbean and a line drawing of a typical tall ship. We are debating a list of nautical terms: aft, keel, starboard, etc.

Interestingly, some folks didn't like the character/setting lists in the DW books. One even said, it bugged them--found it insulting.

I don't know. I think for a YA title, its good to have them. What do you think?

So much for rest...

Isle of Swords

The reality of being an author is, once the first draft of the manuscript is finished--a new dimension of work begins. And, I'm not even talking about the obvious edits and revisions which surely follow.

Here are just a few of the items I need to create/complete:

Front Matter including:
Character Names and Descriptions
Setting Names and Descriptions
Nautical Terms Glossary
Ship Names and Descriptions
Dedication

Back Matter including:
Sneak Preview of Isle of Swords Sequel (Uh, I better think one up!)
Acknowledgements

Teaser Summaries and Taglines:
These are intriguing summaries of varying lengths: Single Sentence, Paragraph, Single Page, etc. Taglines are the "Bumper Sticker" version. Hmmm...a 330 page novel condensed into a bumper sticker phrase. YIPE!!

It's all fun, and it's all work. But what worthwhile isn't?

By the way, if you missed my earlier post, see above the potential cover for Isle of Swords. Post in and let me know what you think!

Isle of Swords is FINISHED!!

As of seven minutes ago, I typed out the last line of Isle of Swords. It grew into something much bigger and much more powerful than I ever imagined it would. God has a way of delivering surprises.

One Chapter Remains...

Wrote for 8 hours today. One chapter of Isle of Swords remains.

I don't know what it's like for most authors. Don't know how fast other authors write. But for me, if I write two pages in an hour, I am really flying--greased lighting flying. I've been praying and had others praying for me. Today, I averaged THREE pages an hour. This happened during The Final Storm as well. And I will always look back and remember what God did in these crunch times.

Two quick observations:

1. A.D.D. and writing don't mix. I am the worst case I've ever. What were we talking. Hey look at that cute kitten. Huh?

2. I need to get a more comfortable chair. Nuff said.

Almost there.

It's 5:20. I'm in my little writer's prison cell at the local public library. Thank God for this little room. Four walls, a table, a chair, and an electrical outlet. I've been pounding the keyboard since 10:30 this morning. I'm in the thick of the ending, not far from the climax of Isle of Swords. I can sense the moment of victory…though it still may not be until 4:00am. ;-)

How fun is this?

In my classroom (I teach middle school reading/English) I have a Snoopy poster. He is sitting at a typewriter atop his doghouse with a silly grin on his cute face. His caption, "It's exciting when you've written something that you know is good."

And you know what? Snoopy's right. Right this very minute, I left a thrilling scene of Isle of Swords to come here and post. Why? Because I was having so much fun writing it that I wanted to share it. It's not that I know it's good--my editor will no doubt let the air out of my head when she reads the first draft. But it is absolutely a BLAST to write it. I've got the mental movie rolling, I feel the fright of the characters, I intensely, insanely, desperately want to know what will happen next!

God says trust in Him, and he will give you the desires of your heart. God's promises are so true.

Isle of Swords Update: Slower writing today. Spent hours on last minute research and visualizing--necessary, but time-munching. Nonetheless, I believe I will not only finish in time, but will finish ahead of schedule. It's not my power. It's HIS power.

See you Friday.

How do you do it?

I'm sure a lot of authors get asked that question. Especially, if the author is married. Especially if the author has children. Especially if the author works another full time job because (surprise to the general public) not all authors are getting rich.

My answer: God is really, really good. We have a lot of ways of saying this: God provides, God was there for me, God gave me the inspiration. But if you are as busy as I am or even worse, a cliche just won't cut it. Let's remember the people God places in our path who enable us to do something worthwhile.

My wife is the reason I was able to write for 10+ hours today. She became Mom and Dad, put toys together, found batteries, made meals, did laundry, and 100 other things I'd never even dream of doing even if I was at home. ;-) MY wife is a gift from God.

And by the way, I finished three more scenes of Isle of Swords, today, and think I'll write a few more hours yet. Pushing toward the conclusion now. Very fun stuff.

See you tomorrow.

Power that never fails.

A brief note tonight. I have 5 days left to meet my deadline for Isle of Swords. Looking at my outline, I have 11 scenes left to write. On my strength, I cannot make it. If I do, on sheer Wayne-power, what I write will stink to high Heaven--and I'm not being facetious. But, I am declaring these next 5 days: A Guarantee based on His power. Each night, I'm going to check in and declare the praises of that day.

If you happen to be writing tonight, remember, He is able...

Merry Christmas!

It's Christmas morning. My oldest daughter just gave me a kiss on the cheek--a rare and beautiful thing. My boys are taking turns skateboarding and riding a new bike. My youngest daughter looks like a snow angel in her new dress. I am reminded of how generous our Father in Heaven is. I am grateful to have four healthy, happy children. I'm grateful to be alive to see their Christmas joy. I'm grateful that, as an author, I have a chance to serve along side God in this Great Adventure.

So, Merry Christmas to everyone and anyone who calls Jesus, Lord and Saviour. And for any who don't, who might still be kicking the tires on this "Christianity thing," and wondering if God could really be real, three questions for you, and three promises:

Questions: Answer them honestly
1. Do you really believe that the whole world in all its intricate beauty and design, ALL happened by sheer chance?
2. Do you really believe that this life, just 80 years or so (90+ if we are very fortunate), are all that there is--and nothing else?
3. When you drive to work in traffic, slam a door after an argument, or watch the first 15 minutes of news, do you ever wonder if there's something dreadfully wrong with this world?

If you answer, no to 1&2 or yes to #3, I have three promises for you. Actually, these are God's promises with my paraphrase.
1. There is someone who knows you--really knows you. He knew you before you were born. He knows every secret you've ever kept. He knows your fears, your hopes, your failures, he even knows those things that "if anyone else knew," you'd feel ashamed---and YET, He loves you anyway.
2. There is beyond this life a paradise beyond our imagination and adventures which, if we could glimpse them for just one second, would leave us breathless. This eternal world is there for the taking.
3. No amount of selfmedication (alcohol, food, sex, relationships, etc.) will ever fully take away the awful truth that this world and all the people in it, are flawed. There is only one God who can satisfy your soul. He will give you the living water that begins to quench your eternal thirst.

Merry Christmas and a thoughtful New Year.

Only One Week Left to Finish Isle of Swords!

37 Chapters of Isle of Swords down, about 10 to go...all this in 7 days, oh, and Christmas. YIPE. I'll just keep singing, "He is able, more than able...to accomplish what concerns me today."

By the way, here's the proposed cover for Isle of Swords: